The Mountain
by Gilgondorin
Summary: A lone teenager decides one day to venture up the harsh, unforgiving, and untamed upper slopes of Mt. Moon in search for a Pokémon companion to call his own, and instead gets a crash course on the risks, rigors, and rewards of Pokémon Training, and a taste of the hard day-to-day struggle that is daily life on The Mountain.
1. Chapter 1

**Pokédex Entry** **#31** **– Nidorina:** " _…The female has a gentle temperament; because its horn grows slowly it prefers not to fight. It has a calm and caring nature… If it is threatened with attack, it raises the barbs that are all over its body. When Nidorina are with their friends or family, they keep their barbs tucked away to prevent hurting each other. This Pokémon appears to become nervous if separated from the others…_ "

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The sun had not yet reached its zenith, but already what paltry shade there was provided little respite from the midday heat; it seemed like even the Pokémon had all decided to lay low and wait for cooler weather as well. Roughly a quarter of the way up the foothill of a large mountain was a lone human – possibly the only human for miles around – who shielded his eyes against the sun and looked farther up the mountainside.

Tall for his age at 6'0" and of average build, the young teen could have passed for someone much older than he really was; puberty had been a fickle mistress, granting him a face mostly free of acne, at the cost of any real facial hair. With short black hair and brown skin tanned darker brown thanks to that sun, he might look handsome in a few years – but for now, he wasn't going to win any beauty contests. While Alex wasn't necessarily an athlete, he was no slouch at the gym either; even so, he decided it was more than time for a break despite it being barely 11:00 am according to his watch. On that thought, he opened and took a deep swig from the water bottle in his hand.

Alex had already spent five hours earlier that morning searching the paths and woodlands that covered the lower mountainsides, and as he'd predicted the early start had indeed doubled his chances of encountering wild Pokémon; unfortunately, something he HADN'T predicted was the large number of "junk" Pokémon he'd encountered: Pidgey, Rattata, Caterpie, and Weedle, to name a few, and all practically by the oil tanker-load, along with more than a few somewhat dangerous Pokémon Alex had steered well clear of.

A rustle from nearby raised Alex's alert level for only a bit; judging the sound it was probably yet another Rattata – which is to say it wasn't the prey he sought. However, it evidently _was_ the prey an Ekans sought, if the hiss and the agonized squeak of terror that followed shortly he heard was any indication; immediately deciding that relocation to a less snake-infested area was in order, Alex tossed the half-empty bottle in his pack and shouldered it again hurriedly. Setting off on the trail again, his thoughts drifted back to what had brought him out to this forsaken rock in the first place.

With school out for the summer, there couldn't have been a better time for Alex to venture out into the world. It had been a hard year, but studying and good grades earned had also earned him his mother's blessing on this little expedition – it had been a key component of the plan since his saved allowance only got him so far.

Although Pokémon and Pokémon training were literally everywhere, and in spite of the fact that Alex's parents had met during his mom's old training days, he'd never really felt the wanderlust that many of his classmates had; unlike fully a fifth of what would eventually be his graduating class – who had already decided on a life of professional Pokémon training and taken a year-long leave of absence – the extent of his experience and interest with Pokémon was an elderly neighbor's pet Growlithe that was a fetch maniac, and the stray Meowth from up the street that it liked to chase.

However, it had taken only seeing one picture in a reference encyclopedia one day at school while writing an assignment, to instill the fledgling desire in Alex to capture and domesticate a Pokémon of his very own, and the quest to capture that Pokémon had brought him to Mt. Moon – the closest place to Alex's home that an Absol _might_ live.

A commotion in the distance sounded; the loud flapping of wings and the harsh cry of a number of Spearow interrupted Alex's thoughts; nervously he looked to the skies. It was no secret that wild Spearow were very ornery, and could be dangerous even to Pokémon trainers with Pokémon to defend themselves with, especially when confronted by Spearow traveling a large flock.

The thought of a trained Pokémon companion suddenly reminded Alex more acutely of his own decision to remain without any Pokémon until now – haltingly, he checked the pocket where only ten empty pokéballs he'd bought for the occasion jangled; _maybe all those the junk Pokémon I've been avoiding all day wouldn't have been so useless right now after all,_ Alex thought, with a pang of regret. The noises grew louder; the flock was moving closer quickly.

He scuttled up the trail as quickly as the terrain allowed for as long as he dared. It wound another 45 yards roughly up the incline to where the first entrance to the cave network in Mt. Moon SHOULD have been, and Alex could still probably have made it... But the path disappeared over a steep rise, and he couldn't actually see an opening yet; without taking time to unpack his flashlight, and without knowing for sure that the cave was indeed there, Alex would be taking an enormous risk – running out into the open would get him spotted for sure, and with nowhere to go, the flock of Spearow would have no trouble chasing him down. The first of them would be overhead soon; for lack of a better plan he ran and dove off the trail instead, hoping to lose them in the thick cover of the forest.

The tumble through the foliage, brush, and undergrowth was hardly elegant or well executed, and the cuts, scratches, and bruises began to mount; narrowly missing a fairly large a thorn bush and a patch of poison ivy, Alex came to a stop partially entangled in a bramble. Missing the poison ivy in particular was a huge stroke of good luck Alex thought, getting to his hands and knees – however, looking up from the brambles, and coming nose to stubby blue nose with a large and even more poisonous Nidorina was NOT.

Except for her spines, which began to rise defensively, the two of them froze in an instant, staring eye to eye: _O_ _f all the places in the world that I could have landed, I ended up HERE at the mouth of a Nidorina burrow!_ Alex thought helplessly, seeing the den-like pocket hollowed out in the brambles where she'd been sleeping. The Nidorina let out the beginning of a very vocal disapproval at his sudden appearance, but fell silent almost immediately: The squawking cry of the flock of Spearow was about to reach a crescendo. She glanced up, instantly recognizing their peril – and wisely kept her mouth shut. Petrified, Alex did not move, only rolling his eyes skyward.

The Nidorina tensed, her spines rising even higher; Alex fought the reflex to jump back and yell, as the points of several of them caught him on the tip of his nose; although the thick coverage of trees above might conceal them from the view of the murderous birds, the Spearow would hear him for sure if he shouted out loud; the first of them passed overhead then, oblivious to the human and Nidorina frozen below; eyes watering from the pain beginning to radiate outward from his nose, Alex dared a sigh of relief – which turned to a sigh of exasperation as one by one, the Spearow apparently decided to use the upper canopies of the trees above them for a roost.

 _You've got to be kidding me!_ He thought, enraged; like puberty, Lady Luck seemed to be an equally fickle lass. Even the Nidorina cautiously edged back into the bramble-den she'd made for herself, as if to say, thanks for the warning, but you're on your own! Even this blue Pokémon had weathered enough winters to recognize the danger unpleasant winged beasts posed. The screeching of the Spearow was deafening, but Alex hardly heard it, so focused was he on the throbbing pain in his nose. The Nidorina watched him intently from within the relative safety of her burrow – she'd fended off enough unfriendly Pokémon in her lifetime to recognize the effects of a good poison stinging, even if the strange human wasn't making any of the usual noises accompanying such a painful experience.

The human watched like a hawk the canopy above as he quietly shifted back; to the Nidorina's relief, he did so without betraying their location to the winged pests. A sudden explosion of flapping startled both Alex and the Nidorina; she cautiously edged only her head out enough to look skyward a moment later – they had begun to depart. The grimacing human by this time had covered his mouth tightly with a hand, his other clutched tightly in a fist in his lap, as the last of the Spearow departed. Silence... And not a moment too soon. " _Yeeeow!_ Argh! Oh man, that hurts _so bad!_ " Alex cried out as loudly as he dared; it felt like… Like there was some kind of poison in his nose!

Cautiously, the Nidorina moved forward again as before, grunting once – _Well, that was fun and all, but, they're gone now, and you're in my territory. Go away, two-legs._ She took a step forward intending to nose-push the Spearow attracting human further away back toward the trail, when it raised the clenched fist from its lap suddenly. The odd whine of a device she'd seen only once before as a young Nidoran made the blue freeze instantly, as the spherical object tripled in size in the human's hand – she had no time to react.

With light tap, the human pressed the button on the front of the Pokéball against the same place on her snout she'd unintentionally stabbed it, and then suddenly the world was a blur: Literally. Being transformed into a red, amorphous ball of energy was a sensation that defied description, and was unlike any experience she could think of, short of the far more traumatic first time it happened. In this state, physical sensation ceased to have meaning, becoming instead a vague afterthought attached to the Nidorina's consciousness; she perceived a sudden sensation of complete confinement, and that confinement brought on a profound sense of claustrophobia: instinctively, the blue rebelled against it, and the fight was on.

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Struggling against the bond that held her was another experience that could never adequately be related to one who had not already experienced it themselves; it was as if she felt an unseen force drawing her in, away from the comfort and safety of her burrow... But to where? Immediately she registered a consciousness separate to her own, that she realized had been there during the experience all along – almost like breathing, only not remembering one was breathing at all until they consciously remembered and then controlled the working of their lungs.

In this state, the two consciousnesses mixed and melded; it was like inhaling air thick with a cloud of different smells, and only through hard concentration and sheer force of will could the Nidorina keep her mind focused on her own "scent": _Relax. There is nothing to fear. You are home._ The intrusion of thoughts blew into and seized the Nidorina's mind, momentarily ruining the focus on keeping herself indistinct, as a powerful compulsion invaded her consciousness.

 _Relax? I can't! I won't!_ The blue female's mind screamed, conjuring up memories of her burrow, of her favorite drinking spot by the river, of the berry bushes in bloom each season – _Home is my burrow. This is NOT my burrow!_ These thoughts gave her mind something to anchor to; she felt her resolve harden. _Relax... Your burrow was only a crude shelter against the elements; it could never offer the luxury your new home offers, if you'd only look. Here, there is safety. Security. Comfort._

The consciousness focused itself around these thoughts, trying to meet her fear and emotion with logic; in this shared existence, she could see its enthusiasm as it sought to impart it unto her: it was like she'd found an entire grove filled with bushes of ripe berries year round, and water cool and clean even in the summer than she could ever remember it having been. _Your material concerns are legitimate, but the most important gain you will make, will be lifelong companionship, and the chance to become strong. Stronger than you already are, stronger than perhaps the strongest Pokémon you've ever met._

The allure of such promises was powerful; visions of a new life clouded her mind – but only just barely so. _No! Humans are dangerous; I'm being tricked!_ The renewed awareness of the Nidorina's predicament sent a bolt of instinctive resistance through her. _Put your fears to rest: the human you just saw will love and care for you – it is a burrow-mate, an ally. Together you can become close friends, if you would only give him the opportunity._ The longer the ball held her mind in its grip, the more her instinct to fight and resist wore away; insidious was its clever insinuations, wearing away at her fears.

The promises seemed too good to be true... But perhaps the ball was telling the truth, at least in Nidorina thought back to the first time she experienced this same tribulation as a little Nidoran; the human then, a smaller one, had ordered its Beedrill to attack her, which was a painful and highly traumatic experience to say the least – to make matters worse, she had been a young pup still. The human had attempted to capture her once its pet had thoroughly beaten her – and then, when she escaped… The Nidorina's mind pushed away the unpleasant memories, unable to afford being distracted by then now, of all times.

In contrast, this human hadn't tried to fight with or attack her like the last one had, even though she had accidentally prodded it with her venomous spines. If he had, we'd both been discovered and mobbed by that flock of Spearow, Nidorina thought, ironically. As the tense seconds dragged on, the blue female began to truly questioned the wisdom of a life of continued solitude; life on the mountainside was no picnic, and could be lonely at times – irritatingly, the more impulsive side of the Nidorina's mind allowed itself to be inundated with the possibilities the ball promised: _What if this human_ _really does_ _h_ _o_ _ld the power to bring me a better life after all…?_ But…

The thought of a Pokémon rushing to attack the its hapless victim-opponent flashed in the Nidorina's mind, only this time it was her attacking some other tiny and helpless Pokémon at this human's behest. _I'd rather_ _DIE_ _than be forced to attack other young and defenseless Pokémon as that human made the Beedrill did to me!_ The conviction in that statement banished the mounting influence the ball exerted on the Nidorina's will immediately; the ball had no practical answer to this, and that was the final nail in the coffin of the pestilent thing's insidious attempts at indoctrination.

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Reality – physical reality – exploded into being again, swirling around the blue's senses again as she swirled back into corporeal form again; the ball burst open with enough force that it split in two, and the triumphant Nidorina's form solidified in an instant as she leaped free, immediately squaring off with the sneaky human, this time ready to attack, or at least defend herself. The human clearly seemed surprised or disappointed that its ploy to capture her failed; he sank back against a tree, and enraged, the Nidorina stamped a foot and prepared to charge – except, the human didn't move.

Alex could hardly believe his luck – or again, a lack thereof. The ball had shuddered vigorously in his hand for nearly a full minute, building him up to an almost unbearable level of anxiety; no less than three times had the ball's red indicator dimmed, than it suddenly began shining again barely a heartbeat later, struggling in vain to contain the Nidorina. Evidently her final burst of rebellious refusal to submit had been the last straw; the ball leaped from his hand and exploded. Materializing into a very real and very upset corporeal form, the blue snorted, clearly ready to attack.

 _Run!_ The silent thought screamed in Alex's hazy mind – however, a very disconcerting dizziness began to sweep his head up; it seemed as though someone else were moving his limbs, and he were only watching with odd detachment. The prick on his nose was either worse than he thought, or he was allergic to the venom, because it had taken what little strength he'd had just to hold the ball in his hand moments previously; again the Nidorina snarled a challenge that he hardly heard, as his head drooped.

 _I feel so_ _wiped out all of a sudden_ _…_ Alex thought. _No… The poison…! This is bad; I'll never be able to fend her off or throw another ball… I don't know if I'll even be able to stay–_ Alex thought; brief flashes of his family back home and the life he'd left behind flitted through Alex's mind for as long as his scrambled brain could continue to function – the memories turned to dreams and then faded away to black nothingness as the poisoned human blacked out.

The Nidorina even bared her teeth threateningly... But the human still made no move. The blue paused at the as the human slackened; a moment later he slumped limply to the ground at the base of the tree, and she realized the human had fainted altogether. _Ha! It was only a small prick if anything, weakling! I've jabbed other Pokémon far harder than that!_ The Nidorina scoffed haughtily, cautiously expecting it to be another trick. The blue advanced, intending to trample the conniving trickster into the dirt – and a crack and a tinkle drew her attention back to the foot she'd just stepped forward with.

The red hemisphere of the pokéball, now crushed underfoot and partially blackened, stared back at her. _Try and capture me, will you? Oh yeah, the spines it is!_ She thought angrily, as she remembered the human's attempt to capture her; another crack, as she stepped forward again – the white half of the ball. Still, the human did not react; it lay already defeated before her, now that her toxins were already doing her work for her – in spite of its attempt to capture her previously, the Nidorina checked her temper and studied the creature for a moment.

Unconscious, it was utterly at her mercy: _You earned your freedom declaring that you would never harm another so weak and defenseless as you had once been, and yet here you are. This human is no less helpless now, is it not?_ The unexpected intrusion of the ball's voice, already faint and growing even more distant, seemed to echo in Nidorina's mind – at least, she thought it was the ball.

The blue female growled, willing the annoying presence into permanent banishment from her mind, and looked back to the human. _It would take no more than one good jab with the largest of my spines…_ The Nidorina thought to herself, then tossed her head wildly about in frustration – her conscience spoke up then, supplying the second half of the sentence as it always did: _...To make you no better in actions or in spirit than the little human and its Beedrill._

The Nidorina rumbled in acute frustration, but sighed in disgust, already feeling her habitually short-lived temper beginning to leave her, as it always did. _Ugh! ...Fine... You will be spared – but only because you did not send something to attack me first. Be gone by the time I return, or you'll really regret it for sure_ _this time_ _!_ She thought, stubbornly; however, a cursory inspection of the human bit onto some unknown curiosity in the Nidorina's mind – she moved closer for a look at her would-be conqueror. This incident presented a unique and possibly valuable opportunity to inspect one of the two-legged beasts up closely, with little fear of reprisal.

The human smelled funny, like nothing she could remember smelling recently… But then again, humans had an odd tendency to never stray from set paths in this part of the world; there was no telling what the world smelled like where it was from. Though it took some conscious effort to relax sufficiently give the circumstances, the Nidorina finally succeeded in lowering all her spines, ensuring they would not mistakenly prick the biped again for this next part of the inspection – she began by nosing around, first inspecting the creature's odd, spindly legs, and she recoiled mightily in shock as part of the human's foot seemed to fall off.

 _Pidgey feathers! That was an accident!_ She thought nervously – no wonder humans sought Pokémon; they were so physically pitiful as to fall apart on their own! Even though the Nidorina probably should have stopped while she was still ahead, a nagging curiosity still tugged at her. There was little of interest in the empty creature's spindly paws, but its hump, trapped beneath its body, seemed to exude a mix of somewhat intriguing scents – some good, some bad, others indeterminate. There was no way to investigate further with the creature laying upon it, so for the moment it would have to be forgotten.

"Mmmhhh….. Mm-mm?" The human croaked; instantly, Nidorina backed off – but if the human was waking, it did not move very strongly; _Not awake, just stirring._ She realized, moving in closer, even though her better judgment all but screamed at her to leave; the human's paws clenched shifted weakly. "Mhm-mha?" It groaned. "Mmmoma?" It asked, calling something out again; "Momma?" It spoke, somewhat clearer – evidently, this one was called a "Momma", if humans called like Pokémon did, the Nidorina decided.

She approached what was undoubtedly the creature's furred head hesitantly; it was clear that even though the human's eyes half-opened, they saw little, if anything – they were unfocused, uncoordinated, unevenly dilated, and its eyelids droop; a clammy sweat began to form on its nearly spineless brown skin, and its breathing – once normal and robust – now began to grow shallow at an increasing rate.

A cold, gripping realization hit the blue then, and a pang of regret jabbed her more acutely than any emotion she'd felt thus far, and unlike her anger, the regret was here to stay. _Hey now, I didn't mean to_ _kill_ _this human…!_ She thought, beginning to feel remorse – she'd never truly meant to kill anything in her life before. The human fixed on the Nidorina, staring into her scarlet eyes – but again, there was an odd detachment there as the creature looked up at her. "Momma?" The human slurred in a weak mumble, reaching weakly for her face.

Sadly aware that the human was past any ability to do her harm, the Nidorina waited to see what the evidently morally wounded human would do next. "Momm-hmma". It slurred weakly, placing a clammy hand on Nidorina's cheek, caressing it gently – weakly, tenderly, as if seeking comfort from her in its final moments. Nidorina's heart crushed; even on its deathbed, the human did not seem to hold a grudge against her, even for poisoning it. Perhaps there was a chance these were merely the ramblings of a creature delirious from the effects of her neurotoxic venom; even if they were, the notion that she'd caused them stirred the Nidorina's utter shame even more.

"mmmh…." It said; Nidorina answered once, softly – but, the human's hand fell from her face into the leaves, and did not move again. "Dung. Rotten Spearow dung! It was an accident!" The blue female protested out loud, moving away from the fallen human, her thick tail hanging low and a mounting tidal wave of guilt beginning to consume her every thought. The human said nothing to this, because it had ceased moving altogether; though its breathing had not yet fully entered the realm of weak, raspy gasps that usually preceded the bitter end, it was growing weaker.

If ever a wild Pokémon had mourned the loss of a human, she'd never heard of it until now, and she would have never imagine herself as being that Pokémon either; even so, tears began to form in Nidorina's eyes – tears that fell to the forest floor, insignificant and impotent before the human's plight. There was nothing that could be done now, nor anything that could be said; a wave of desperation set in: the Nidorina wanted to be far from here, from what she'd done… But she also felt she had a duty to at least see this human through until the bitter end; the blue's legs faltered, and she collapsed onto her rump. _Be at peace as you leave this world, human; may your spirit at least join Arceus in the afterlife,_ The Nidorina thought; the weak eulogy was the only thing that her ailing mind could think of saying.

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The sound a faint noise raised Nidorina's head, and she looked through the thick undergrowth of the forest – the noise had been so faint that she couldn't be sure she'd actually heard it in the first place; after looking around and sensing nothing out of the ordinary, she instead looked to the sky. With the sun no longer directly overhead, it was now late afternoon, and hours since she'd woken to find a human tumbling down the mountainside, to land practically at her feet... The same human still tenaciously clinging to life right beside her, in spite of the Nidorina's silent pleas to cease torturing itself, and finally give up the struggle.

 _Your resilience is admirable, but the longer you fight, the more you prolong the suffering. Go in peace already… For_ _both_ _of our sakes!_ She silently implored, sick to her stomach now with shame; as a poisonous Pokémon, she'd poison stung many things in her life; all of them had been other Pokémon, which were more resilient to her toxins than evidently humans were … But even so, she'd only ever poisoned out of self-defense, and until now, she'd never intentionally killed anything or anyone. Another noise, loud enough this time that there was no mistaking she'd heard it, disturbed her thoughts; as it grew, she realized it was not a noise at all – it was a chant.

"Cle-fairy~! Cle~fairy! Cle~Fairy~! Clefairy~!" A light pink Pokémon Nidorina had only ever even seen three times before in her life, seemed to materialize out of the late afternoon shadows cast by the forest canopy. It was clutching something in its hands and seemed to wear something suspended around its neck, on a tiny line. It chanted its melodic chant as it moon-bounced along, neither making a noise nor disturbing any of the leaves and grasses on the ground with its passing – had the creature not been chanting its sing-song chant, Nidorina doubted that she would have heard this very strange Pokémon at all, even if the thing had passed right behind her.

The gentle lope only slowed when the Clefairy spotted them. Nidoran, not wanting to spook the thing off, did not get to her feet; the Clefairy was far enough away that it could probably dance off into the forest again by the time Nidorina took 2 steps – she knew from experience, as that had been the usual result the three times she'd attempted to converse with one before. Nidorina rested her head on her paws utterly morosely again, only staring at the odd creature; all Pokémon knew on some level that these incredibly mysterious beings inhabited the deepest, most unexplored and inaccessible regions of the mountain, venturing out only exceptionally rarely for… Well, spirits knew what.

In all the winters that Nidorina had lived on the mountain, no encounter with the mysterious pink creatures had ever lasted as long as this one already had. The Clefairy stopped its chant, falling totally silent and coming to a gentle, graceful stop, almost as if it was walking on the moon itself and not merely a mountain named after the moon. It paused seemingly analyzing the situation. Nidoran raised her head again, looking at the human, so pale and sweaty now, his breathing finally having reached the ragged rasping of one on the cusp of death. Nidoran only replied with a low, wordless moan; each rattling breath piled on fresh heaps of bitter regret upon the blue. Not setting down the object it carried, the Clefairy approached gracefully, evidently no longer uncomfortable with or afraid of Nidorina's presence.

The Clefairy muttered something quietly to itself, and Nidorina saw an old look cross its face, as it approached the human. "It w-was an accident... When I awoke from a nap, it was here before me; he'd been chased by Spearow. This human bumped into my spines on accident, and now its dying. I didn't mean to do it on purpose!" The Nidorina gushed, relating the incident to the Clefairy, who said nothing. The pink creature set down the object it had been carrying – Nidorina could not imagine what it was or what it was for – and seemed to center herself.

"Cle-fairy… Cle-fairy… Cle-fairy, Cle-fairy, Cle-fairy, Cle-fairy, Cle-fairy!"

It began to sing, its fingers beginning to swing back and forth rhythmically; the motion seemed to spread to the entire, wondrous Pokémon's stubby pink form, which swayed slightly in time with its hands... And then the glowing began. The Nidorina blinked, backing off a little, unsure of what she was witnessing – it wasn't an evolution, and it didn't appear to be an attack…Thus, the blue could only watch silently, as the mysterious pink being chanted a little longer, and then finally touched its fingertips together, and touched them to the human.

The moment the Clefairy's hands made contact, the human gasped sharply and raggedly, tensing as if its whole body were racked with pain. "Stop! You're hurting it!" Nidorina protested, standing to intervene, until the light hit her as well, filling the blue's whole body with a comforting warmth, like sunbathing on a cool day after a big meal; a sense of calmness and serenity washed away the terrible feelings of guilt.

"What's happening?" The Nidorina demanded, but the Clefairy paid her no heed; the light of its otherworldly spell focused on the human's body, and the blue couldn't help but wonder what it must have felt like to receive the full brunt of the mysterious being's spell, rather than the glow that she had. The human's body finally eased, all traces of strain and tension slowly leaving it, and the ragged rasp of its breathing slowly beginning to return to a stronger and more even rhythm. Even the pale, sallow pall that bleached it tree-bark colored skin returned to a far healthier looking shade of brown reminiscent of what it had been when she'd first seen the human; the sunken flesh around its face drew less pallid again, and he exhaled deeply – a sigh of relief, and not a moan of pain.

Nidorina blinked; already, the human hardly resembled the withering husk of a creature moments from death she'd just seen only seconds ago. "What–?" Nidorina turned to ask, looking at the Clefairy – except there was no Clefairy there anymore. Aside from the human, the blue was alone again; even the object the pink Pokémon carried had been silently retrieved, and not even an impression in the vegetation of the forest floor remained to suggest either of them had ever been there. The Nidorina looked around the immediate area, everywhere, tossing her head about looking for any trace of the Pokémon, and seeing, hearing, or even smelling none – not even the chant that had originally preceded it.

Nidorina paced around, unsettled at such a surreal experience, but a cough from the human reclaimed her attention. Compared to before, the human now appeared to be resting somewhat comfortably – or at least as comfortably as one could, laying on the odd misshapen thing attached to its back. The biped made another noise – one of discomfort, not pain – and shifted weakly. Nidorina backed off slightly, unsure of what to do now; it was alive still, and looked like it was going to stay that way – thanks to that mysterious Clefairy.

"Ohh, my back..." Alex groaned. Everything hurt, especially his nose, which felt like it was going to catch fire and fall off at the same time, and his aching back – even his toes, finger-tips, and hair seemed to hurt. However, the discomfort of lying on his backpack was at least one thing he could help; rolling over onto his side, and then his belly, he lay for a moment, hissing at the relief in pain, which seemingly brought on more pain that hurt in a different way. A noise to his side interrupted his languishing – and his eyes popped open. _The Nidorina!_ He thought fearfully, as a massive blue foot stepped right in front of his face.

 _Oh…_ "–Crud!" The Nidorina looked down intently at him, as he squirmed weakly on his side, still exhausted from the experience of being poisoned, and drained from the effects it had on his body. "Easy girl…" He said, at a loss for actions – the remaining 9 empty Pokéballs he carried were in the pocket he was laying on, and therefore out of easy reach... But, something seemed distinctively different about the Nidorina's demeanor than he remembered it. She sat down nearby, calling once softly. _What the…?_ He wondered, blinking the tears of pain from his eyes as his noise protested an errant wiping of sweat from his face. _Jeez, that still hurts like crazy. What the hell did you inject me with?! Cyanide? Acid!?_ He wondered, as the pain in his nose reminded him what had happened.

The Nidorina watched as the human expressed acute discomfort with its nose still – the Clefairy's spell on its body notwithstanding, evidently some things like the human's nose where it had been stung were still going to take time to heal. "Well, you're alive. _Now_ what happens?" She wondered aloud, half-rhetorically; when it became apparent that she wouldn't attempt to gore it with her spines, the human propped itself up against the base of the tree it had collapsed under, breaking out in a sweat again from that exertion.

Nidorina stayed where she sat, watching the odd human in revulsion as it removed the hump on its back and began digging around inside; the Nidorina grew tense, watched and expecting another Pokéball – then blinked in bewilderment as it withdrew something half-filled with looked like water, and emptied it in one chug. Then, the human held its tiny nose – fair amount of blood had seeped forth from the wound, covering the creature's face, neck, and chest where it had dripped. Tensing, the biped pinched something – and let out a yell that startled her as it tore out the some of the Nidorina's spines that had apparently lodged in the fleshy tip of its nose when she'd first pricked it.

The blue couldn't understand whatever it was the human was saying, but she imagined it was most definitely an expression of pain or displeasure; sheepishly, she wondered if perhaps she had been too critical of the human earlier – it still had made no move to attack or try to capture her again, which was an immense relief to the docile Nidorina. The human said something likely addressed to the Nidorina, but its words were lost on her; it threw the spines away, pausing as its stomach made rumbled loudly enough that the Nidorina heard it very easily it with her large, radar dish-like ears – the blue's own stomach rumbled in answer, as she realized the entirety of the day's commotion had occurred right as she woke up from her afternoon nap – right before she usually set out to forage.

The human said something out loud probably to itself, and then reached in the bag again, withdrawing something that made a lot of crackling noise like dry leaves on the forest floor as he handled it; she caught a whiff of the smell, and realized it had been one of the more tantalizing smells coming from the bag her keen nose had detected earlier. The human bit a piece and chewed it hungrily, taking a few bites, noticing she watched it all the while. After a moment, the human pinched off a corner, and tossed it at her feet; it smelled like nothing the Nidorina had ever smelled before – not even the berries she liked to eat smelled as sweet as the muddy brown object. Sniffing it once more, she ate it cautiously… And marveled at how its sugary sweetness easily rivaled that of berries, but somehow without the fruity tang. _It tastes_ _delicious_ _!_ The Nidorina thought, as she licked her muzzle.

Alex watched the Nidorina investigate the piece of chocolate with some amusement and a fair amount of trepidation; if he could earn her trust, then perhaps she would not attack, although he could honestly see no reason as to why she had stuck around at all. He touched his sensitive nose, which already seemed to feel just a tiny bit better without the scale-spine lodged and possibly still injecting poison in it; _How_ _in the world_ _am I alive still?_ Alex wondered; after all, he had fainted dead away earlier from the jab before he could have done anything to help himself.

"Were you watching over me?" He asked the Nidorina rhetorically, knowing she couldn't answer. He broke off another small tidbit of chocolate and offered it to her, wondering if she would accept it from his hand. She only watched him for a long while, only finally approaching after he'd tossed the piece to her, a short distance away. The next piece Alex offered was bigger than either of the previous two, but, this time he didn't set it down, and for a while, she sat, staring at him with her odd, piercing red eyes. "Ah ah – if you want it, you're gonna have to take it from me this time." He said, encouragingly; briefly, the absurdity of the situation struck Alex acutely – evidently, though the poison must have still been working its way out of his system, it was still affecting his judgment… Why else would he insisting on hand-feeding a wild Nidorina that had already poisoned him once?

If the brown sweet-food was the prelude to another trap, then it was certainly a very tempting one… And yet the sweet, melt-in-your-mouth treat tasted so _GOOD_! The Nidorina hesitated, her better judgment being dragged away by her impulsiveness for the third time that day; when nothing materialized from the human's hand other than another really delicious piece of the food, the Nidorina licked it clean and nosed around for more – this time making sure her scaly spines were well flat, to prevent accidentally stabbing it again.

The human fed her another piece: _I_ _f this insane creature had any sense at all, it would be terrified of my teeth – they're bigger than its spindly little paw-toes. Maybe we're both crazy; maybe I'm just getting soft._ The Nidorina thought, as the human fed her a piece big enough that it took her a moment to chew it; hesitantly the biped took the incredible risk of placing a paw on the blue's forehead, petting her softly. _Maybe the ball was right – aside from the whole attempting to capture me thing, this human doesn't seem so bad after all. And… How untrustworthy could a creature really be if it can make things this tasty?_ The Nidorina wondered, as the human proffered her most of the rest of the food-thing.

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It was with a tinge of regret the next morning that Alex woke up from a fitful and restless sleep, that he saw the Nidorina had gone in the night. The body aches had lowered to a more manageable level, but he'd blown almost half a day lying around thanks to the incident with the blue creature – time was wasting, and he'd already botched capturing the Nidorina even though a Nidorina wasn't anywhere near the Pokémon he was actually after.

The memory of the amusing blue female stirred up a number of mixed emotions – She was dangerous of course, but Alex was alive, and that fact plagued his thoughts without end as he sat below the tree for almost an hour after waking up to the sun rising somewhere above the forest. _The poisoning I got was pretty bad..._ Alex thought, as he remembered the last few moments before he'd blacked out. _What in the world happened to me while I was_ _unconscious_ _?_ He wondered fruitlessly for the second time; he still felt a full-body discomfort as if his veins were on fire, but the pain was already gradually beginning to subside – he'd live somehow, but he didn't know how. Alex checked his watch; more time was wasting. The Nidorina had not yet returned, and might never return, Alex concluded, after waiting a while longer; she WAS wild, after all.

Thus, the human stiffly forced himself to his feet; Even for a Pokémon, the Nidorina seemed intelligent and independent: _L_ _ike the story goes – a caged bird would never truly sing its most beautiful songs as it would when free. Perhaps it's best she stayed out on her own,_ the human thought. However, that notion could also just as easily apply to the Absol he wished to catch: _Would it really be fair to attempt to capture that Absol either,_ _assuming I even_ _did_ _find one out here_ _?_ Alex wondered, already beginning to feel his desire to catch a Pokémon begin to waiver.

The Nidorina had nearly eaten all of the chocolate bar the day before, leaving Alex with almost nothing sweet to at least snack on and curb the sharp hunger he was beginning to feel; getting to his feet slowly to avoid swooning, he gathered his things, and shouldered his pack – the den the Nidorina had made for herself lay only a yard or two away, and, carefully placing the last remaining tidbit of the chocolate bar he had inside for her to find, he stood and began working his way back up to the trail up the mountainside, without looking back. It was this piece of chocolate the Nidorina discovered when returning home later that afternoon, having spent the morning foraging for enough food to make up for the previous day's shortfall.

She blinked, noticing the human had gone; all around she smell relatively recent signs of its passing, including the entrance to her den. There the lone piece of chocolate lay, which she chewed slowly, pondering – the human had to have left it for her specifically. _Either I'm getting_ _even_ _softer than I thought, or…_ Briefly, the Nidorina wondered how bad life with a human could really be on her own terms now, rather than with the ball trying to dominate her will. For starters, the food had already proven to be good so far, even though indulging in food wasn't a vice to the Nidorina. Perhaps most importantly, the human had begun to demonstrated some of the qualities most important to her: the kindness the ball had promised.

 _It could still be a trick… Or a lie._ The Nidorina thought; even the small human had first attempted to catch her, before it sent its Beedrill to attack and finish her off. Rumbling in annoyance at the complex dilemma, she moodily took to her den, which now somehow seemed a tiny bit emptier than it had before. Absentmindedly, she licked the ground where the chocolate had been left, tasting the last traces of it lingering there – aside from the capturing incident, her experience with this human hadn't altogether been totally unpleasant.

In fact, the more she thought about it, the harder it was for her to remember a time when she'd spent so much time in the company of something that was friendly – or at least not annoying – other than an old Noctowl whose friendship with the Nidorina cherished. However, the Noctowl was but one creature whose nocturnal lifestyle meant she rarely had the opportunity to visit; and, in all her life, the Nidorina had never seen another of her species of Pokémon anywhere on the mountain – according to the Noctowl, her kind rare or almost unheard of this far from their normal habitats; in fact, the old bird had said that the Nidorina's currently evolved form – earned after winters of butting heads with the many indigent Pokémon to Mt. Moon – were even rarer than her younger Nidoran form on the mountain.

 _I'm not lonely! ...I'm just a little bored with my surroundings... Is all._ The blue thought silently to herself, trying to convince herself that she wasn't being defensive; however, that reasoning seemed flat and lame anyway as she truly thought about it. The blue exhaled deeply, tossing and turning, unable to get comfortable; eventually in frustration she abandoned the den, and paced around restlessly, coming to a stop where the scent of the human's body still lingered on the grass.

 _Damn it. Perhaps I should have stung it after all._ The sarcastic thought did little to keep the blue from grinding her teeth together subconsciously; she hesitated, ready to pace restlessly again, when an idea visited her mind. _The human's scent trail…. I could follow its scent trail…!_ Again, the realization was tempered with significant doubts: _….Why would I want to? If the human changes its mind, it could try to attack or capture me – I may never see my burrow again!_ The Nidorina was worldly enough to realize that fact.

... _Then again, if this human is as nice as it seems to be, I won't have to anything to fear from it; I can see what it is the creature wants up here on the mountain, and when it leaves, I can just come back home!_ She decided, standing; the hope that the human didn't seem as interested in capturing her was the only hope the companionship-starved Nidorina had. Hesitating a moment longer, the blue cast one long and hard look back at the den – back to a large part of essentially the only life she had ever known.

 _You're making a_ _big_ _mistake…_ The thought came from her more cautious instincts, and the Nidorina almost considered banishing all thought of the human from her mind right then and there… But, the memory of the human's hand rubbing her cheek gently in forgiveness even as the unfortunate biped slid into the realm of death fought its way to the forefront of the Nidorina's mind. _Maybe I can_ _follow_ _the human – just for a day or two! – and see what it's up to?_


	2. Chapter 2

Although the progress was certainly nothing to be proud of, Alex was glad to be up and about again after the incident with the Nidorina from the night before. He still felt very ill, but the nausea was gradually getting easier to contend as time went on; a quick bathroom break turned out to be even more relieving than usual – the urine was proof that Alex's body was working to purge the toxins from itself, and that fact was more than a little reassuring considering the teen had never been poisoned by a Pokémon of all things before. Not long after setting out, Alex made it the short distance up the hillside where he thought the entrance to Mt. Moon should have been… And it wasn't.

Clearly, the teen's decision to escape the Spearow by fleeing into the forest rather than making a break for the cave had been well-served; the area was little more than a rest-stop from which the trail stretched still another several hundred yards or more up and around the mountainside. _Jeez… I've have been pecked to death out here_ _for sure_ _._ _They weren't kidding when they said venturing out of civilization can be dangerous;_ _that's strike two, Alex_ _,_ the human thought to himself. On that thought, Alex paused to study the enormous mountain looming high above, looming up and out of sight. _I've got a long way to go,_ the teen realized. To push himself too hard in his current condition would be foolhardy, particularly when caution had already paid off in spades; thus, he slowed his pace a little while shielding his eyes from the sun with a hand.

 _For being a popular tourist attraction this time of year, this place is a ghost town._ _W_ _here_ _in the world_ _is_ _a fellow traveler when you need one?!_ Alex wondered after some time spent hiking in silence, glancing up and down both ways of the trail and not seeing another soul anywhere around. By his judging and admittedly poor map reading skills, Alex should now have been at least over halfway to his destination; upon locating a flat rock, carved into the shape of a bench and along the trail-side, he removed his pack – it was a little lighter than it should have been; trying to keep discouragement at bay, Alex realized his stores had taken a slight hit from the unplanned rest stop with the Nidorina.

 _Even with mom's help, I don't think I planned this trip out nearly well enough,_ Alex concluded hesitantly, extracting another bottle of water to drink a carefully measured amount from. _Maybe I shouldn't have been so stubborn in refusing to let her come out here with me; after all, she's an old hand at training..._ Alex thought glumly and gritting his teeth in embarrassment; it had been at his insistence that he be allowed to try to stand on his own two feet already, without what had seemed like her hovering… And yet it was his mother's advice alone about backpacking and hikes had gotten the teen this far at all, without encountering any additional calamities.

By the time the sun began to set, Alex had finally found a flat, slab-like rock to use as a bed, and had decided to call it quits for the day. A brief "shower" with baby-wipes, a good tooth-scrubbing, a fresh change of clothes, and one small can of soup later, Alex began to feel remotely like a human-being again. By this time, twilight was nearly upon him; with no wood or the energy to locate enough to start a fire, he simply sat for a moment, barefoot in the cooler evening air, looking out past the increasingly sparsely wooded surroundings to the other mountains and hills surrounding him and admiring the view in the dimming light. _Maybe there_ _i_ _s_ _something to this training thing everyone brags about;_ _it's kinda pretty out here when you think about it –_ However, the loud and fearsome call of something very large startled Alex and made him shudder. _Just kidding!_ _S_ _crew_ _the great outdoors!_

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The dream was an idle fantasy, but it was one of Alex's favorites: in it, he would walk to school and find it mostly deserted, except for Stacie Tran, from Class 1-D – the object of his affection. She would drift toward him for small talk, and the two would instead hit it off like old friends (even though she'd hardly ever spoke to him in real life before). ' _It's so nice to finally meet you personally; I've seen you around so many times, but never got the chance to say hi_.' Alex would say. ' _I really enjoyed meeting you too.._ _. Maybe we should meet up some time, and get some milkshakes at my Grandfather's restaurant. He'd be happy to meet you."_ The girl would offer.

It was no secret in reality that Stacie's grandfather owned a popular restaurant frequented by all the kids from his school, but Alex didn't care any about that – Stacie had captivating eyes and the laugh of an angel. " _Milkshakes sound great. I'd love to meet your grandfather too; did you have a specific time in mind?"_ Alex would ask, as Stacie twirled her hair with a finger, looking around. " _Class is either really late, or canceled altogether… How about now?"_ She'd ask. Grinning and slinging his bag over a shoulder, Alex would stand and join her. " _Now sounds_ _great_ _. Got plans to do anything later this afternoon?"_ He'd ask, and then she'd give him that look that sent shivers down his spine even in his dreams. " _Not anymore, I don't. What did you have in mind?"_ Stacie would ask, sliding her hand into his almost shyly; now came the best part. " _I was thinking maybe we could hang out…_ _Just the two of us._ _"_ Alex would suggest, flushing with bashfulness and excitement, after which she'd deliver his favorite line: '– _Nido_ _!'_

Alex frowned in confusion: Nido? ' _Um.. Excuse me?_ Alex asked, perplexed. " _Nido. Nidoriiiina."_ Stacie answered with a serious look on her face. As was only possible in dreams, Alex's school surroundings suddenly became a dense mountainside forest – and Stacie was now leaving him, walking down a trail selected at random and quietly muttering the word "Nido" over to herself; Alex could hardly believe his eyes. " _Nido... Nido... Nido... Nido…!_ " The words echoed in his mind louder now, even with Stacie gone, and then he turned – there, standing behind him, was the Nidorina from earlier, looking much less friendly than before. " _Hey, easy!"_ He said, as she began to advance dangerously on him, spines extended; a moment later she charged, running into him nose first.

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 _"AH!"_ Alex's eyes – his real, not-dreaming eyes – shot wide open as he jumped into wakefulness; the moon was high overhead, meaning it was still late at least. Alex checked his watch; even the dim face of the digital clock seeming bright under the starry night. _2:28 AM – it's still way early; I must have_ _just_ _had a bad dream…_ _W_ _hat_ _gives_ _, brain!?_ Alex wondered blearily, wiping the sweat from his brow and noting with relief that the pain in his nose had died away a fair amount in the time he'd slept. _That Nidorina's going to terrorize me in my dreams now, too?_ _This sucks._ Alex thought with only vague amusement; he yawned deeply. _I can still go back to sleep before I fully wake up. Tomorrow will be an early day – it has to be;_ _I've already lost lots of time_ _._ He thought grimly, yawning again, rolling over, and burying his face in his spiny, scaly blue pillow.

Alex's eyes flew open again: _Scaly blue pillow?!_ Immediately the teen recoiled away from the dozing form beside him as if it were on fire. " _Nido…_ _Nido… Nidooo_ _.._ _._ " The snore of the Nidorina was barely audible over the pounding in Alex's ears from the surprise of waking up to having been sleeping next to the dangerously venomous creature. "Whoa! What the hell…!?" The teenager demanded out loud, in shock – however, the Nidorina only cracked one red eye, sleepily regarded him for a brief moment, smacked her mouth, shifted her head on her paws, and went back to sleeping soundly. Alex rubbed his eyes again – carefully avoiding his nose – and looked closer, hardly believing his eyes. "Nido… Nido…." The creature snoozed deeply again, probably already lost in a dream.

Alex tried to back away carefully until he almost fell off the stone slab serving as his bed as he did so. _What in the world is_ _she_ _doing here?_ The teen's mind screamed – he was too terrified of making enough noise that the Nidorina awoke fully. Immediately, Alex hurriedly grasped for the Pokéballs in his pocket, and then froze when he realized they were still in the pocket of the shorts he'd changed out of… Which were in his backpack, sitting beside the sleeping Nidorina. _Wait._ _Stop._ _Ca_ _lm down…_ _And_ _think: If she w_ _anted to attack me_ _, I would never have lived long enough to wake up from that dream,_ Alex thought, trying to slow his heart rate; innocently, the Nidorina snored again, and for a moment, she almost looked cute sleeping there beside where he had been sleeping. _What the hel_ _l_ _is she doing here, and how_ _in the world_ _did she find me?_ Alex wondered, bewildered.

The Nidorina was still technically wild – she might be there of her own accord for the time-being, but that didn't necessarily mean she'd stay friendly toward him if he wasn't careful, and, one way or another, she'd probably wake up regardless of what he chose to do next: Alex could either attempt to capture her, or pack up and creep away… Neither option presented a very high probability of success; attempting to capture her again stood the highest chances of angering her into violence, and trying to sneak off in the dark was as dangerous as it was pointless – if she found him already this once, she could probably find him a dozen times again.

 _Well…_ _I_ _could_ _just go back to sleep again..._ This third thought presented itself a moment later and the absurdity of the idea made Alex wipe his face carefully in disbelief. S _he's here_ _because she somehow wants to be;_ _if she wanders off again in the night, the problem will solve itself._ The Nidorina snored again softly, the picture of harmlessness – … _But_ _if she_ _attacks_ _? Hikers will find my decomposing body!_ Alex thought, nervously. _No..._ _I_ _should already be dead,_ _and I'm not._ _Staying here won't be_ _taking any more of a_ _risk_ _than_ _the one I_ _already_ _took in_ _coming out_ _to this mountain_ _alone. Sleep; you've already been through a_ _lot_ _, and wild Nidorina notwithstanding, you_ _need_ _the rest._ Alex thought to himself; the reminder that he was still very tired made him yawn – the Nidorina didn't stir, and continued dozing softly.

The Nidorina's moment of peaceful repose gave Alex the chance to study her a bit more closely for the first time. She was a big girl – easily larger than even himself, in fact. The spiky plates along her back were all at least as tall as his hand, the tallest of them being nearly being half again as big; each of her almost radar dish-like ears were ringed with spines nearly two times longer than any of his fingers – yet in sleep, the ears were folded daintily against herself, twitching only once or twice as she dozed. The blue's two largest fangs, each protruding menacingly from either side of her stubby snout, were almost as long as his hand from finger-tip to wrist, and looked wickedly sharp; each hind leg, though stumpy and short, were stout, well-built, and rippled with muscle.

The Nidorina's tail, stubby like the rest of her endearingly squashed and compressed features, was still almost as big around as his thigh towards its tip, and was almost as long as his extended arm. The only thing that didn't make her look like a mouse-eared blue sumo wrestler, was her relatively slim body, which was decidedly thin compared to the rest of her squat features – Alex couldn't decide whether it made the blue female look sleek, or underfed. _T_ _here_ _must_ _not_ _be_ _a lot in the way of food for a Nidorina of_ _her_ _size_ _here_ _on this mountain,_ Alex decided, at length. _Aren't they supposed to live on the plains_ _anyway_ _?_ _Where in the world did this one come from?_ These were the thoughts occupying Alex's mind as the teen lay back, getting comfortable in his sleeping bag.

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"NIDO!"

The impatient grunt was the first thing Alex was aware of when he awoke, and it was the only warning he got before receiving a firm push off of his sleeping perch, throwing him wide-eyed and terrified to the ground a moment later. Frantically, Alex fought his way free of the tangles of his sleeping bag, dreading and expecting the next blow – except it never came. Only after Alex was sure his heart hadn't stopped did he look to see why: The Nidorina actually seemed to be _laughing,_ if a Pokémon could even be said to laugh. Could they? Cautiously Alex waited, but she continued her odd rumbling chuff for a while yet, sitting beside where until a moment ago he _HAD_ been sleeping soundly. "You smart-ass little..." Alex grumbled, annoyed… And then realized his wrist watch's alarm had been ringing unheeded the entire time. _Beep-Beep! Beep-Beep!_ Evidently, his alarm clock had woken her up and she'd tired of listening to it. Keying the button to silence it, Alex wiped his sweaty brow with the back of his other hand – _What a heck of a wake-up call._ He thought, sourly.

Breaking camp had gone much more smoothly than making it had been; even though it had been on a rock, the rest had been good for Alex's body, and he felt a considerable amount better than the night before. Other than watching carefully and occasionally nosing around in the things he packed, the Nidorina did little more than watch; at last he was ready to go. "Okay, let's get..." Alex started to say, but his voice trailed off; the Nidorina sat, staring at him mutely. Technically, she wasn't _his_ to command, since he'd botched his only attempt at capturing her, and that memory made him hesitate. "...Going." Alex finished, shouldering his backpack. Turning to leave, he noticed she didn't not follow; only more staring. Shrugging, and this time without anything to tempt her along, he resumed his trek up the mountain, alone again.

Alex resumed his hike up the mountain trail for only a couple of minutes' time – just long enough for the sun to bring a photogenic glare to the blue skies above the mountain – when a distant crack and a rumble like lightning and thunder interrupted the otherwise peaceful sunrise. Alex slowed, perplexed; there were no rain clouds anywhere in the clear blue sky, and yet still the rumbling continued, getting louder and sounding much closer than before. _What in Kanto is going on!?_ _Alex_ thought nervously; a crack like a gunshot pealed out, starling the teen – an instant later, a speeding boulder the size of a reclining chair shot out from behind a tall ledge ahead, and it went tumbling by so quickly Alex didn't even have time to react, let alone dodge the enormous stone missile.

Flying shards of rock, clods of dirt, and dust peppered him from head to toe as the thing collided with the rocky mountainside each time it bounced; very narrowly missing Alex only by pure luck, the boulder careened down the trail out of sight, and it was all the teenager could hope for that the Nidorina – if she was still back at the campsite – wouldn't get hit. However, another crack like the first echoed out again and this time Alex dove and flattened himself against the trail side, as another boulder, this one only a little smaller than the first, came tumbling in from the same direction.

Whereas the first boulder had landed on the trail and therefore continued down it in its wild descent, this second boulder slammed into a rock outcropping and pin-balled against another two, before bouncing in front of and coming to a rest a few strides away from where Alex lay huddled; the thundering, earthshaking rumble of the first boulder soon largely died away, leaving only the croon of a Pidgeotto somewhere far above the mountainside to accompany the ringing in Alex's ears. _Whew! That was way too close!_ The teenager thought, as he looked up at the boulder and shuddering to think of what a direct hit from something its size would have done had it hit him – or a Nidorina.

Jeez _… I wonder if she's okay,_ Alex thought, finding himself worrying about the blue in spite of her declining to follow him any longer – hesitating, Alex glanced back down the trail; it was close enough that he could afford to go check on the blue at least to make sure she hadn't been hit and seriously injured. Thus, the teenager started to get to his feet when the boulder _moved_... _A_ nd started to do the same. Alex froze, eyes widening; a pair of stone-faced eyes blinked open in equal bewilderment; the upside down living rock then righted itself, shedding pebbles and dirt, then spoke: "... _Graveler_."

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 _That human is one odd creature_... The Nidorina thought, nosing through the underbrush in her search for breakfast. _It didn't even stop to forage for anything to eat; either humans have extremely small appetites, or it has no idea there's even edible food in this area,_ the Nidorina thought, recognizing a wild tuber in the ground by its leafy stalk and digging it up – though earthy, it still crunched satisfyingly in the blue's jaws as she chewed ponderously. _Come to think of, a lot of what_ _it_ _does makes no sense. The route_ _it_ _took up_ _to this part of this trail_ _was long and circuitous – I'm beginning to wonder if the fool_ _ish thing_ _even knows what_ _it_ _s doing out here._ The blue thought, as she continued to search for edibles in the brush.

With her keen ears, the Nidorina heard the thundering crack of a Graveler tumbling down the mountainside long before she actually saw it, and looked down from her vantage point on a rock shelf overlooking the trail below; bitter experience early on in life had taught the Nidorina growing up what Graveler were, and what habits they kept; this one here was one of a number of its kind that had colonized the almost totally human-uninhabited Northern face of the mountain – the rock Pokemon liked very much to periodically to race each other down the hillside by rolling up into balls and letting the slope of the mountain bowl them along – the faster, the better.

The Graveler were hopeless adrenaline junkies, and they stopped for nothing unless they ran into a rock bigger and stronger than they were; many an unfortunate Pokémon had met their end or nearly so by being caught in the way of such races – Nidorina included – and was precisely why she avoided the higher altitudes, where encounters with the brutish creatures were most frequent. Chewing on the branch of a bush filled with smaller but sweeter berries than ones grown at lower altitudes, a thought occurred to the Nidoran that made her stop mid-chew: It always took at least _two_ Graveler to race, and she'd only seen the one, coming from where the human had foolishly impatiently wandered off by itself.

Seemingly punctuating the thought, a faint but familiar shout of terror echoed off the mountain from farther away. _Idiot_ _!_ _It_ _must not_ _have realized_ _those_ _wild Graveler_ _haunt_ _this area!_ The Nidorina thought incredulously; after a moment's hesitation, the blue chomped down on another branch laden with berries, and began running as quickly as she could toward the source of the noise, chewing hurriedly as she ran. _Foolish human! Oh,_ _Arceus forbid that Graveler realizes it's lost its race, at least until I get there – "Nothing goes where an angry Graveler throws!"_ The Nidorina thought, remembering the old proverb the old and wise Noctowl had taught her once back when she were still a pup.

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The Graveler looked up at the human for a moment, blinking dust and loose dirt from its eyes. " _Graveler._ " It repeated, looking around a moment later to get its bearings... And making the grim determination that neither the other Graveler it had been racing, nor the finish line they had both agreed on, were present. "Graveler!" It rumbled in angered disgust, realizing at once that it had evidently veered off course or landed in a rock trap. The stone Pokemon stamped angrily, casting about for rocks to fill each of its four hands; finding only two, the creature used brute force to break a hunk of rock out of mountainside itself, and sheared it in half in a terrifying display of brute force.

The Graveler braced for a tremendous rock throw, casting about for a target; however, by the time the rock pokemon remembered the human from just a few moments earlier, so vulnerably far out of human territory and into wild Graveler territory, the rock Pokemon turned to see him fleeing, already about to round bend in the trail. "Grrraaaaavelarrr!" It bellowed furiously, hurling a rock at the retreating human's back and narrowly missing by only a few paces; the flung rock skipped it off the mountainside with enough speed and force that the rock itself shattered with a deafening crack that nearly made Alex jump out of his skin.

 _Todayisnotmyday! Todayisnotmyday! Todayisnotmyday!_ Was all Alex could think over and over again repeatedly, and he swore aloud as he ran for the bend in the trail with reckless abandon. A second pelted rock cracked behind him an instant later just within arm's reach, and his thoughts drifted momentarily back to his room, safe and with wireless Internet, back home: _I'm going in there and never coming out again,_ Alex thought. "Holy––!" The teen started to blurt, as a miniature blue mountain seemed to materialize from around the bend, heading straight for him. Purely on reflex, Alex dove as high as he could over the Nidorina, and cursed out loud as he nearly landed face first on the path, almost falling off the side of the trail in the process; on his feet in a flash, he started to run, until he heard the sounds of a wild Pokémon battle erupt further back up the trail.

" _Nido!_ " Nidorina snarled in surprise and anger, as another rock skipped off the path, missing her by a spine-length; the Graveler paused, caught off-guard by the sudden, unexpected interference, but was more than happy to take on this newer and more familiar pest. It wound up again ready to sling another rock – and received a full frontal blast of a pin missile attack for its troubles. Staggered but not stopped, the Graveler threw his remaining rock anyway, and took satisfaction at the sound of it striking home with a dull crack. The barrage of pin missiles stopped almost immediately; the two dazed opponents shook off their very painful injuries in time to look each other in the eye. The Nidorina growled, taking a step forward and stamping her paw into the ground.

"Hey! Leave that human alone and pick on something your own size, you bully!" The challenge looked impressive, but the Graveler did not miss the slight waver in the Nidorina's step, nor the terrible scuff right between her eyes where its rock had evidently hit her – it began to bleed. "Like you? That human's far from it territory – and so are you. Bring it on, _soft-skin_!" The Graveler sneered contemptuously, ripping more stones out of the mountainside to arm itself with. The Nidorina growled in rage and frustration – this particular Graveler was not familiar to her, but his attitude was, and a righteous fury filled the blue Pokémon; though the human may be weak and somewhat foolish, those characteristics were _precisely_ why this Graveler had no right to pick on it.

The blue danced aside as the the Graveler launched the next volley of rocks; sidestepping deftly enough in spite of her squat nature, the Nidorina charged the instant it ran out of readily available projectiles. The pin missile had been a trick that took quite some doing to learn, considering she'd had to "learn" it after several very painful encounters with some Beedrill in her youth, but the next attack came to her as naturally as breathing did: the Nidorina closed the gap with the Graveler, forcing it to abandon its rock-throwing in favor of trying to counter with a flurry of punches, and gave it a tremendous sting with every available poisonous spine she could straighten.

Unfortunately, the Graveler sent her stumbling away from a punishing blow to the forehead, forcing the poor Nidorina to grit her teeth and snarl out loud against the pain the smack to her already sore head had exacerbated; however, as true extent of her attacks began to take effect, the Graveler began to stagger, uncoordinated. Wet spots were present all over its rocky surface where her poisonous stings had literally left their mark; within moments, the Graveler seemed to lose all stomach it originally had for the fight – it clutched some of the areas where it had been stung the most, where the blue's potent venom began to work. The Nidorina shook her terribly aching head, and snorted in defiance of the pain – this Graveler had wanted a fight, and now it was going to get one. The blue focused on the Graveler's form even through the teary blur in her eyes, and charged at it again.

The rock Pokémon stumbled backwards as the Nidorina slammed bodily into it, knocking it backward off-balance – then, it fell right off the trail face, tumbling down the mountainside without making any visible effort to control itself or curl into a ball to roll. The blue watched only long enough to confirm it wouldn't be back, and then staggered away from the ledge – the pain in her head began to make her feel dizzy and nauseous and she groaned; falling onto her belly since her legs would hardly support her, the Nidorina writhed, clutching her injured head in her two stubby forearms. At some point, the human must have returned and watched at least part of the fight, because Nidorina heard the creature rush to her side the moment the Graveler was dealt with.

The human rummaged around in its odd back-hump and said something aloud the Nidorina didn't understand, then produced something evidently filled with liquid. The human paused, studying the head injury, and held up the bottle. Had the Nidorina known how badly it would sting when the human sprayed its smelly liquid on her forehead, she would have tossed it off the cliff like the Graveler! Snarling in pain the moment the spray touched her wounds, the Nidorina chomped down on the human's hand defensively and shoved it away forcefully – the human began yelling things at her in its own tongue that she guessed were less than civil, clutching its bitten paw.

Spines raised defensively, the Nidorina backed away; the unnatural chemical stink of the liquid on her forehead filled her nostrils, and the blue wondered what in creation could have possibly caused it to hurt so much. Although the terrible burn lasted for several moments, miraculously, it began to subside, and much faster than the Nidorina realized it normally should have. Though her head still pounded from a terrific headache, the stinging from the cut and bruised skin was largely gone, providing enough relief for the blue's watery eyes to clear – _What in the world did you_ _do_ _, human!?_ The blue wondered hesitantly, clutching her sore head.

The Nidorina's reaction to having a potion sprayed on her injury was as unexpected as it had been painful, and Alex stumbled back, shouting and clutching his chomped hand. Though it was bleeding and hurt terribly, it was thankfully nothing compared to what _would_ have happened to his hand had she caught him with the giant incisors on each end of her mouth. Alex swore at her, and cursed several times under his breath – the bottle fell to the dirt, a quarter-empty. The humor from the situation was smothered by Alex's fraying patience with how poorly this expedition was turning out, and the fact that his hand might be truly hurt. "What the hell was that for? I was only trying to help you!" Alex spat at the Nidorina; curling his fingers painfully, he was relieved to discover nothing appeared to be broken – yet. The Nidorina and him made eye contact again, and the fact that she was covered in toxic spines was the only reason he resisted the urge to strangle her.

Ironically, the Nidorina had to resist the urge to gore the human with her spines again, this time on purpose. " This is the second time you've escaped certain death, biped! Must I follow you around the entire mountain to keep you out of trouble?" The Nidorina demanded, irritably. "I've got a headache to wake the dead because of your foolishness!"The Nidorina growled, momentarily neglecting to acknowledge the fact that her head injury felt ten times better than it should have now, thanks to the human's mysterious spray. However, a sharp sting on her forehead reminded the Nidorina that she'd interrupted his ministrations before he'd actually finished tending to the injury.

The bottle lay on the dusty rock path between them, abandoned, and Alex regarded both it and the Nidorina with open suspicion when he realized what held her attention. Having to swallow her pride, the blue hesitantly stepped forward, sniffing the bottle, and nosing it across the dirt toward the human, making it obvious what she wanted – except that Alex didn't move, and merely continued to clutch his still-bleeding hand. Now that the sting of the sting of the antiseptic in the Potion had subsided and the healing properties and pain medicine in it had kicked in, she badly wanted him to continue – but Alex stared, unable to suppress a burst of annoyance as he worked his hand.

" Oh, come on. We can hate each other again after you put the rest of that on my head; this really hurts, and you owe me – I got it because of you! " The Nidorina let out a low groan that turned into a whimpering whine as the prideful blue approached and flopped onto her stomach again near his feet, lowering her ears a fair amount in defeat. The unexpected display of humbled, if not outright apologetic behavior made Alex's temper crumble as the pitiable display tugged sharply on his heartstrings even in spite of his annoyance.

Unaware that his thoughts mirrored hers, Alex considered the situation. His hand still hurt, yes, but then again, his hand would probably had been the least of his worries had she not chased that wild Graveler off, and more worryingly, even to his untrained eye, she'd taken quite the walloping in the battle; the low moan of pain and the obvious look of misery in her plainly intelligent scarlet eyes finally broke his heart.

Hesitantly, Alex reached for the bottle; the blue sighed deeply, as if preparing herself for what was to come. _I guess I'd b_ _etter do this quickly then, like ripping off a bandage..._ He thought, and used up nearly the entire bottle on her forehead, saving the last dregs for the few other small cuts and scrapes she'd received in the fight; gritting her teeth and in visible discomfort with the stinging burn of the antiseptic within the potion, the Nidorina dug her beak-like snout and chin into the dirt.

The assault on the Nidorina's senses by the stinging liquid finally stopped, and it did so suddenly enough that she realized after a few moments of tense waiting, that she was flinching even though there was no more spraying – and, most importantly, no more pain. The Nidorina blinked, and opened her eyes, and carefully examined herself; in the places where the spray was still fresh, her cuts still stung... But, where it had dried already, the burning had dulled away to a marvelously relieving, if highly peculiar numbness. The Nidorina rose to her feet lightly – too lightly, considering she was still disoriented by the blow – and almost stumbled into Alex. Ears flapping, the Nidorina shook her head a little harder than she intended and flopped rather inelegantly onto her rump.

 _That shake made the mountain start spinning. Not good..._ The blue thought, casting a glance at the human: "Nido." She huffed: " What? Haven't you ever seen an injured Nidorina before? _"_ The blue grunted when she caught it staring blankly at her behavior, her mood still colored by the pounding in her head. However, with her injuries tended to, his attention turned toward the fresh wound _she_ had given the human. Guiltily, and in spite of her relatively jaded attitude, the Nidorina began to regret snapping at him – the best of the spray's effects were beginning to take hold, and the swimming haze that fogged her mind soon disappeared altogether. When she could at last stand without threatening to fall over, the Nidorina sniffed at the human's bite injury, which at first it withdrew nervously from her.

The thick tang of fresh blood clouded the Nidorina's sharp nose, and the human muttered something to itself which she guessed was probably a less-than-endearing remark about her, but it finally presented its hand after a time. " Hold still, two-legs. " The Blue ordered. " This may not be as fancy as your stupid spray, but a good tongue cleaning's the best I've got, and it works well enough. Well, it does for Pokémon, anyway." She muttered more to herself than the human as she lapped at the injuries in his palm like she had done to her own injuries so many times in the past.

"It's like some cheesy plug from an old feel-good Pokémon movie." Alex muttered out loud after a few minutes of ministration by the Nidorina. Surprisingly, a vague numbness also began to radiate outward from the source of Alex's bite injury, but, it didn't occur to him until _after_ she finished – leaving his hand cleaner, but uncomfortably tingly – that venomous creatures such as this Nidorina might _also_ have venomous saliva. Perhaps it was natural selection desperately trying to reclaim an point for the collective human IQ by removing Alex from the gene pool; as he began to fret at the possibility of an unintentional second poisoning, the Nidorina contented itself to remain where it lay, still feeling unwell enough to move very much.

 _Man… W_ _hat a pitiful sight_ _we_ _make…_ Alex thought, working his hand open and shut for several moments while stared at the Nidorina, who looked up at him after realizing she was being watched. "What the hell are we going to do now?" He asked the blue rhetorically, looking out over the mountain valley. The Nidorina only grunted her namesake once and rested her head on her paws, feeling unusually drowsy for this time of day – slowly her eyelids closed, and she began to sleep. Helplessly, Alex glanced up and down the trail… Still no sign of anyone else anywhere. As the hot sun reached its zenith high above, the human began to sweat from more than just anxiety.

 _I'm almost out of water,_ Alex realized as he dug around in his pack – of five bottles he'd brought on his mother's adamant command, three of them were empty, and he drained the fourth in just a few moments, leaving one still full. Concerned, Alex cast a concerned glance at the Nidorina; she was already in deep sleep. _She's bound to get thirsty when she wakes up; I won't have nearly enough water for her to drink with just this,_ Alex thought. _She probably shouldn't overwork herself just yet either. I could probably try to find water_ _myself, but_ _…_


	3. Chapter 3

The Nidorina awoke with a snort, raising her head and looking around – the human was nowhere in sight; her headache had subsided somewhat in the intervening hours, but she still felt like dirt. _Ungrateful two-legs; some trained you'd have been…_ She thought, groggily – judging by the sun's position on the horizon, she'd slept at least five or six hours away… And yet she hadn't felt like she'd rested at all.

The blue yawned deeply on that thought, unable to shake the dizzying haze from her mind that wanted to drive her back to dozing there on the spot. Even the realization that she had fallen asleep well out of her home range and into the territory where dangerous rock Pokémon normally roamed did not phase the Nidorina as much as her unnatural exhaustion did; thus, for a while she remained where she lay, unwilling to move.

Yawning deeply, the blue had just decided to force herself to her feet, when she heard noises coming from around the mountainside – to her surprise, it was the human returning, and looking disheveled as though he'd been wandering the unfamiliar territory of the mountain unaccompanied.

Scrapes, more scratches and bruises, and several twigs and leaves still tangled in his hair and clothing – but more importantly, and to her surprise, he was carrying something inside a number of clear containers that looked like... _Sniff sniff…. It is!_ _Water_ _!_ The Nidorina thought in surprise, swallowing once and realizing she had not had anything to drink since early yesterday morning. The human slipped and fell on a rock and nearly dropped them all, cursing it and his own clumsiness it sounded like, but he eventually reached her side – in spite of her prideful nature, the Nidorina did not hesitate to let him know how interested she was in the water.

For his part, Alex paused. With no bowl present and no one to pour water into his cupped hands, giving the Nidorina any fluids was going to be a challenge; however, after nearly 10 minutes of patience and teaching, the blue finally learned to simply hang her mouth open as he poured from the bottle down into her mouth. With some amazement, he watched as she emptied the first container immediately, and then nosed the pile over, clearly still thirsty.

 _It took me almost an hour of wandering around these woods to find that stream, and she's already emptied 4 of my 5 bottles._ Alex thought several minutes later, unscrewing the 5th bottle and watching her nearly empty it too, before finally belching and turning her nose away at the rest. "Gee, thanks for saving me some." He muttered, swishing the remains of the 5th bottle around; there was less than a quarter of it left.

Visibly contented by no less , and without ever having gotten up and feel asleep again, snoring in less than a minute. _Clearly someone is trying to tell me something._ Alex thought, glancing at the Nidorina. _She'll never be able to continue climbing in her condition, and I can't just_ _ditch_ _her here and continue on alone..._ He thought, with a sigh. Exasperated, Alex collected the emptied bottles again. _This isn't going to work. If she drinks this much all the time, I'll never be able to keep her watered,_ Alex realize… Not unless the Nidorina submitted to travel in a pokéball, was something Alex still sensed she was _very_ much opposed to. Although the Nidorina had been fine alone in the time he'd been gone, he still felt terribly unsure about leaving her alone a second time, even though he had a far better understanding of where his destination was in relation to them now – wiping his brow, he set off back down the mountain path, kicking a chunk of rock from one of the ones the Graveller had thrown over the edge as he went.

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By the time he had returned, it was early evening; feeling significantly better than the night before, Alex picked his way along the trail a little more confidently. The Nidorina did not rise again until he was back, this time only downing one bottle before settling into a contemplative silence, not having risen from where she lay the entire time.

Truth be told, Alex was more than a little inclined to join her there – the exertion of so much hiking had taken a lot out of him. "You're going to kill me." He muttered aloud rhetorically to the Nidorina sarcastically – the desire to touch the creature's side again rose up within Alex, and he hesitated for a long moment; she did not move or assume any threatening posture even after she saw what he was up to, and so Alex breathed a silent sigh of relief when her spines remained flat against her body – it was a sign that he was at least no longer a threat to her.

Perhaps she understood; perhaps not. The blue's ears lowered, and she was lulled back to sleep again a short time later by the running of his hand over the smooth carpet of spines on her hide. Looking up at the top of mount moon, the peak seemed so much farther away now than it did earlier this morning; though he still felt well enough to hike for perhaps a short while longer, the Nidorina would not be going anywhere in her present condition for a while yet still. _I guess I may as well rest up here with her – the extra recovery time can only do me good, I guess._ Alex thought with a resigned sigh, beginning to unpack again with a sigh, keeping a concerned eye on the injured Nidorina.

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" Hey, wake up. We should forage for food." Nidorina mumbled groggily early the next morning, nosing the human's side and drawing out a rather loud snore in response. _Hmph._ _Layabout. How in the world do you expect to beat the furrets to the berry groves if you're still asleep?_ She wondered, looking up at the dim pre-dawn sky and trying to ignore the dull ache in her head.

A small form riding low above the trees and flying erratically caught the Nidorina's attention; it was much too early for Pidgey to out and about, and too late for Hoothoot and Noctowl to be on the hunt... At least normally, anyway. The form grew larger and its flight pattern grew more erratic, and the Nidorina recognized the creature instantly – it was indeed a Noctowl, and a very old and wizened one at that.

 _Featherbeak!_ Nidorina thought, perking up slightly as she recognized the owl for who it was – the same Noctowl that had served as the only real friend she could remember having on the entire mountain. Age had not been kind to the bird, and his plumage reflected extremely thinning, ruffled, and faded feathers most unlike the healthy browns, blacks, and grays his kind was known for; even the flap of his wings was uneven, giving him a drunken, haphazard look to his flying – but such was as it had been more or less in as long as she'd known him.

However, despite the dilapidated looking avian, the Nidorina knew from experience that the only things sharper than Featherbeak's talons, beak, and eyes, was his mind; in fact, he'd probably seen her long before she'd even noticed him. After a few moments of erratic flapping and an unusually awkward landing that nearly made the Nidorina's heart stop, the bird straightened and shook himself off, puffed up in an almost comical manner.

"Oh, my old bones are aching again; what a night. What a flight! And, what in the world are you doing this far up the mountain, dear?" The old owl asked, as a feather fell off and fluttered away. The Nidorina paused, turning to look at the human still asleep in his sleeping bag, and then realized Featherbeak had been looking at the human the entire time he'd spoken. "It's not what you think." She said somewhat defensively, realizing the bird might have already drawn a few worrisome conclusions.

" It sort of... Happened. I don't know where it came from, but the fool jabbed itself with one of my spines on accident running away from a flock of Spearow. I felt terrible, because, well, you know how I am about using my spines on others that don't _necessarily_ deserve it – somehow, I don't know from where it came from either, but a Clefairy saved the human, and it's been getting himself into all kinds of trouble ever since." The Nidorina responded.

"...Interesting. But, that doesn't explain why you're still here." Featherbeak observed. "Well… The first time we met, it tried to... You know." The Nidorina admitted quietly, after a few moments of silence. "Something – a voice inside its capture device – told me it was friendly. At first I didn't believe it, but the longer I've been with this human, the less dangerous it seems…. Well, at least, to me anyway – a Graveller would have made paste out of it earlier yesterday had it not been for me; this human is as much a danger to itself really, as anything." She said, wincing at the memory of the tremendous blow she'd received while standing up for the human.

Featherbeak hooted roughly once – an avian cough, so to speak. "Well, I suppose that explains the fainted Graveller that nearly smashed my tree over this twilight." Featherbeak said, though with a tinge of amusement in his voice. "I knew it was you – it had to be you. If the smell of the poison on its rocky body wasn't enough, the blue spine or two still stuck in it left no doubt. I must confess I was very worried to learn that you were so far out of your usual roaming territory." Featherbeak said, hopping past her a few steps, and looking up at the mountain, swaying unevenly on his feet.

"I wouldn't be, if it weren't for this two-legs. Humans!" The Nidornia said, with a little contempt creeping into her voice. "Thanks to it, I'll never underestimate the power of a Graveller's rock throw ever again. _Nothing goes where a Graveller throws._ " The Nidorina continued, with Featherbeak reciting the second sentence aloud together with her sympathetically, and hopping over to inspect her forehead. "A danger to itself, you say? Foolish pup, YOU'RE the one with a knot on your head!" He said, twisting his head this way and that as he fussed over her.

"I suppose you're fortunate enough to have received a light hit – at least, that's what it looks like. How does it feel?" He asked; at this question, the Nidorina fell silent. "It wasn't a light hit at all – I almost blacked out. It felt terrible – it would STILL feel terrible, but... The human put some kind of funny smelling liquid on it, and the hurt went mostly away." The Noctowl paused, inspecting her wounds more closely a second time as she spoke. "…Although I'll admit it's been quite a while since I last spent time among humans, I recall them being able to do such things." He said, twisting his head slightly in thought.

Some time passed in silence before either of them spoke again. "The voice inside the ball promised that this human would take care of me and for all of its failings, it _ha_ _s_ done that – its liquid healed my injury, and so far the only time the human has left my side was to bring me water, which it somehow knew I needed, badly… Oh, what should I do, Featherbeak?About this human, I mean." The Nidorina asked at last, voicing the question that had been nagging her with increasing urgency since the whole debacle started. Featherbeak sighed, taking a moment to preen an old feather loose. "That is a question that I for once don't have the answer to, my dear." He said, finally.

"You've grown into a stout member of your species, strong and independent, as far as Nidorina go. If you're still here with this human, that speaks volumes about the amount of trust you've already put in it – I've never known you to go where you're not wanted. Not without your spines poised at the ready, anyway." Featherbeak said, trying to inject a little humor into the situation; a silence followed as the levity fell flat. "It's probably not the advice you were looking for, but..." He trailed off, to fill the gap.

Nidorina knew Featherbeak was too smart a bird to not know how much she looked up to him and his worldly experience; frustrated with her own indecision, the Nidorina ground her teeth, and got to her feet, pacing anxiously around the clearing restlessly, unable to concentrate. "…For what it's worth, you have done well for yourself here on this mountain, even though it is not your home range. Perhaps it's time for you to venture further afield; there's more to the world than a den on a mountainside." Featherbeak offered.

The Nidorina grunted in reply, sitting back down and looking at the mountain stretched below her. "This mountain's served _you_ well all these years. What's wrong with me staying here on it too?" She pointed out, stubbornly. "I'm an old bird who's already seen and done many things in his life; you are still young and full of energy, with the constitution and the stamina to see new things and explore what lies beyond this glorified rock. You shouldn't be content to waste away the most valuable years of your life here alone living like me." Featherbeak replied; Nidorina remained silent, mulling hard these words. "...It's certainly not a decision to be made lightly, I'll agree to that; why don't you wait a few more days to be certain?" Featherbeak eventually asked, with a shrug of is wings.

Nidorina remained silent for another few moments. "...I don't know if I can, honestly. I have no idea why this human is here, or when it intends to leave. It's learning from its mistakes the hard way like we all do, but, the lessons it's learning from are ones I learned when I was still a _hatching_ , for Arceus' sake." The Nidorina responded, with more than a little consternation. "It's obvious this human doesn't venture out into the wild often… So, it's obvious that if the human leaves this mountain alone, I doubt I we'll ever see it again." She replied; the old Noctowl began to twist his head around in deep thought, which signaled how hard he was mulling it over – it was not something the blue had seen him do many times in her life.

Nidorina grated her teeth, pacing anxiously around the clearing restlessly, unable to concentrate. "I was happy enough to live in my hole just days ago. _Humans_!" She groused at no one in particular. Curiously, Featherbeak did something she'd only see him do a few times before – though his body pointed toward where the sun would rise in time, his head now pointed directly at her, twisted neatly around almost perfectly behind him. The funny sight instantly derailed her stormy thoughts and she burst into a chuffing guffaw, laughing at how odd he looked – she'd spent weeks as a pup trying to copy him the first time he'd done it, and ever since then he'd used it to comfort her in her times of greatest grief or anger.

However, for the first time, Featherbeak's face was serious, and the Nidorina belatedly realized he was lost in thought. After clicking his beak silently for a moment, he finally spoke. "You've never addressed your burrow as a ' _hole_ ' before, young one." The old Noctowl pointed out; the observation stole the last of the Nidorina's humor away and she fell dead silent, considering that fact.

"Trust your instincts – if your impression of this human proves true, and it turns out to be a worthy companion, you will do well together; although some humans can indeed be wicked, others can make the best friends you'll ever have." Featherbeak said, hopping rheumatically over toward her. "Well, I… I guess... I guess I'll stick around for just a while longer – to see what it's up to, maybe." The Nidorina said hesitantly. Featherbeak smiled the way only beaked creatures could – with his eyes, and turned to regard the sinking moon in the distance.

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The human rose not long after Featherbeak departed for the darkness of the knothole in an old tree that served as his den; the human gently studied and worked his bitten paw, clenching and straightening it – guiltily, the Nidorina paused to regard her own healing forehead, and fully regretted her hastiness. However, if the human seemed to have any truly lingering anger over the incident, it did not show it toward her, and th being only offered a token amount of resistance when she silently offered again to lick clean the wound. There was no fresh blood; by the blue's very rough estimation, it seemed to be healing well too. Together they set out, and soon Nidorina followed the human eagerly once she realized its destination had temporarily changed to the stream she knew to be in the area.

" _Hey, you're going in the wrong direction._ _Hey, wait!_ _I_ _t's faster this way!"_ She said, trying to redirect the wayward biped… However, as with learning to drink from water bottles, it took a fair bit of time and patience in addition to her almost dragging the human along several times before he got the idea to follow her lead – in less than 10 minutes they could hear the trickle of the stream. The pair both drank heavily; the water was cold, crystal clear, crisp, and refreshing. The human said something to Nidorina; she stared at him blankly for a moment, then returned to drinking from the stream.

The blue had just prepared to scout out the vicinity for a few more tidbits of food to snack on, when the human sat on its rump and removed its feet again, giving the Nidorina pause – the back-hump came next, which again did little to unsettle her since she'd already seen him remove it once before. However, revulsion and shock finally gripped the Nidorina firmly again when the human began removing his baggy skin in sheets.

 _What in the world is wrong with_ _this human_ _!? Where's Featherbeak when you need him;_ _could humans_ _some kind of sub-species of_ _legged_ _Arbok?_ She wondered, as he removed his bottoms the same way an Arbok might shed its skin; she'd seen Ekans and Arbok molt before, and even a Crabby once, but none of them ever torn their old flesh right off and tossed it aside in such a spontaneous manner as the human was doing.

It took only a few moments for the bewildered Nidorina to piece together an idea of what had happened – like the back hump and feet, the skeets of colored skin were perhaps pieces of the human body designed to come off. However, unlike with the skin-pieces, it took no time at all for the Nidorina to discern one detail about the human that had previously evaded classification until now: _Well… This_ _human_ _'s definitely a male – no doubt about that._ She decided, after only a glance.

The human seemed to be put off by the coldness of the water – for several long moments he chattered to himself while wading in stiffly, until he finally threw himself in all at once, and his head surfaced shortly thereafter wheezing and rattling off unintelligible human speak. _The water is always cold this high up the mountain you crazy human; what else were you expecting?_ Nidorina wondered to herself, until he emerged from the water dripping a moment later to dig around his pack and remove some kind of small, fragrant blue rock before returning to the water.

 _This must be how humans bathe themselves,_ The Nidorina decided, eventually. S _heesh, a simple dirt bath would have done the trick and taken a quarter of the time._ She thought to herself – however, unlike with a dirt bath, the human wore now reminded the Nidorina of an odd tangy scent wholly unlike anything she'd ever experienced before. It was a new and very usual smell, only vaguely reminiscent of flowers or fruit, and something else entirely – spicy, and addictive.

 _I stand corrected: Maybe there's something to this water-bathing after all._ She thought absently, realizing the smell was coming from the smelly blue rock, and absently wondering if it tasted as good as it smelled. As it turned out, the Nidorina realized the soft and chewy rock did not at _all_ taste as good as it smelled when she snuck up to sample it when the human placed it upon the bank; furthermore, the noises the human made seemed to indicate humor as she retreated away from the rock spitting and gagging – at this, the blue flattened her ears against her head, narrowing her eyes at the human.

 _He doesn't seem to be eating it, unlike the brown sugar-food; maybe it's just to smell good – like rolling around in flowers._ She eventually concluded, after rinsing her mouth in the stream of the foul-tasting and chewy "rock". The human emerged from the water, dripping and smelling fresh and clean – he collected the discarded skin and put it inside his discarded hump, and, wonder of wonders, extracted new skin of a different color and set it on the ground, clearly to be donned on a moment's notice; it was a habit not kept even by any Ekans or Arbok the Nidorina had ever seen.

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Letting the frigid mountain stream water course over his bare skin, Alex worked his bitten hand carefully – the Nidorina had volunteered to clean his wound for him again, and against his better judgment Alex had allowed it; unsurprisingly, his entire hand was red and puffy to an extent. However, to Alex's great relief, that seemed to be the extent of the adverse effects – perhaps because the wound was already closed and little if anything actually entered his bloodstream, Alex did not feel the whole-body sickness he had in the days before.

The warmth of the sun contrasted with the frigidity of the air at this elevation; both felt good to Alex as he emerged from the frigid water, invigorated and feeling much better than he had since the start of the debacle. He lay back on the bank and closed his eyes against the glare of the sun to think – he hadn't seen a single soul anywhere on the trail for days; he didn't think anyone would suddenly happen upon him now while he dried.

 _The sun will dry me off if I sit here long enough, but, after that?_ The prospect of hiking any farther up the mountain seemed daunting, particularly after his ordeal with the Nidorina's spines and the angry Graveller; Alex felt his conviction waiver a fair degree. Could capturing an Absol _really_ be worth so much trouble? The creature seemed so powerful, so majestic, and so mysterious that it had instantly captured Alex's imagination – however, he had thoroughly misjudged how illusive it could really be.

Alex's attention wandered back to the Nidorina. In spite of their somewhat neutral relationship together, Alex still had absolutely no idea what to do with her; she seemed contented to follow him around. _She's the only reason I'm not dead yet – but I can't expect her to stick around forever and fight_ _every_ _dangerous Pokemon I ever encounter on this entire mountain,_ Alex thought; _my excursion out here will get a heck of a lot more dangerous without her help, whenever she decides to leave_.

It was already unusual that she had stuck around this long, and she didn't seem to be particularly dangerous. Any day now she might just wander off and never return… Though, somehow, that thought seemed vaguely disappointing to Alex – she had done magnificently against the Graveller. _Would she turn on me if I tried to capture her_ _again_ _?_ The human wondered; _I'd be taking a hell of a risk if I tried – after the way she handled that Graveller, if she broke free and decided to kick my butt, I wouldn't be able to lift a finger to stop_ _her._

On that thought, Alex heard footsteps in the grass as the Nidorina approached the spot where he lay, momentarily blotting out the sun. " _Nido."_ The creature spoke, quietly sitting down beside him; her relatively slim blue form rippled with lean muscle – _living out here is no joke; Pokemon here must have to keep in_ _really_ _good shape with danger lurking around every corner,_ Alex realized; she continued to stare. "...What?" Alex asked rhetorically; she said nothing in return, merely staring at him with her piercing red eyes.

"…What are you still doing here anyway? I don't have anymore chocolate; I'm not even sure how much longer I'm gonna be out here – I'm not exactly very good at this whole 'Pokémon trainer' thing in case you haven't noticed." The human remarked; the Nidorina only cocked her head slightly, clearly failing to understand a word he said. Birds sang and insects buzzed; _I should just turn around and go home right now._ Alex thought; he hadn't even reached the first entrance of Mt. Moon yet, and heaven only knew how much further up the mountainside it would be.

His thoughts drifted back to the somewhat disreputable looking person he'd met in town nearer the base of the moon, who'd sold him the map he now used to navigate the mountain; it supposedly revealed a good hunting ground for finding an Absol, the map itself was of terrible quality. _I think I've been scammed,_ Alex realized glumly, crumpling the map up in his hand in frustration. _How will I even know where the heck I am? I could be wandering the wrong mountain for all I know!_ Alex thought.

" _Whoa_ , girl!" Alex suddenly hooted, a moment later; he sat up immediately, resisting the urge to slap away the Nidorina's snout from where she'd buried it in his side – in his distraction, she had sidled up to him. "Hey! Get out of there!" Alex squeaked, as terrified of her accidentally stinging him again as he was ticklish; the Nidorina resisted for just a moment, then withdrew her interest instead to the rest of him, evidently still curious about the way he smelled – her velvety smooth tongue lapped at the skin where he'd scrubbed with the soap bar he'd brought along for the occasion.

"Hey, enough licking; you could be pois––Hey! are you listening to me? Knock it off, that tickles! Ah!" Alex stammered again, unable to resist the urge to snicker; finally the Nidorina left him alone, and instead shifted focus to his shoes. "Aw, come on. You're getting dirt inside of them! All right, all right, alright, I'll put them on already. Sheesh." Alex groused without any real rancor, as the blue rooted around through them.

"You sure are one nosy creature. What, haven't you ever been around a human before?" He demanded, then paused. "...What am I saying? _Duh_ , you've never seen a human before; you're a wild Pokemon for crying out loud." He muttered to himself sarcastically, as he dusted the grass from his skin and set about to dressing himself.

The Nidorina's nose still tingled with the human's scent; the the spectacle of the human donning his second set of feet again could pull her attention away from the distraction posed by the pungent and heady scent of the scented rock; neither water or the smells of the forest could could cover it up. She snorted and dug her face into the grass; a different scent – not strong – cloyed her nose... And, it took a moment for her to realize why: it was the scent of human, unadulterated by sweat, fear, or any other unpleasant tang. _Male human, male scent_. The blue also realized. The human finished his business a moment later, and began to gather its belongings again; _how does this human compare to other males in size, and strength? Would he win a mate?_ She wondered.

Again, Nidorina thought to dismiss it, until the line of reasoning led her to ponder something again that had bothered her before: _Speaking of mates, what would a male Nidorina look like?_ The blue wondered; Featherbeak had tried once to describe the creatures to the Nidorina, who had never seen one before – he had said that males were pink like the color of fresh scars, larger, and bulkier. It had been a terrible description with nothing to give her imagination anything to grip on. Then, he suggested she use a memory of her own reflection in a pool of water as a more accurate basis.

Featherbeak had suggested picturing herself the same color of pink, but with a large and pointy horn superimposed on her own forehead, and to imagine herself with a considerably less docile and easygoing temperament. _Well… If they look as silly as I'm imagining them, then perhaps I'm not missing out on much as Featherbeak insists I am,_ _by being_ _alone on this mountain._ The blue thought, sarcastically. However, the humor did nothing to disguise the slowly mounting indecision within the Nidorina.

 _If I could only see one myself…_ The blue thought, in rising agitation; the mystery surrounding something so simple as seeing a male of her own species only grew until it buzzed in her head like a swarm of angry Beedrill. _I could have left this mountain myself to find one,_ the Nidorina thought to herself, stubbornly – however, the reality remained that she had not.

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When Nidorina – then still a Nidoran – had been a pup, mating season had come upon the mountain; she'd wandered across more than one pairing, and in a fit of curiosity, she'd eventually sought Featherbeak out. " _Featherbeak, what are all these Pokemon on the mountain doing?"_ The blue remembered shouting up the tree early one evening to the hollow where she knew the old bird made his den.

Featherbeak snorted awake, having evidently still been asleep in the hollow of his tree at the time; he blinked his giant eyes at the brightness of the sun, and paused only for a moment to listen to the quieting cacophony of Pokémon cries in the gathering dusk. " _It is mating season."_ He replied succinctly, pausing to shake his head vigorously to un-muss the sleep from his feathers. " _Every year around this time, the Pokemon of the mountain seek mates to reproduce with; in the spring, mothers give birth to newborn Pokemon when the weather turns fair, and raise them to adults – it's where we all come from, and it's a tradition almost as old as life itself."_ Featherbeak had said, waddling forth from his hole and squinting against in the bright late-evening light.

Nidorina paused, twitching her ears slightly, looking at the surrounding forest curiously. " _Have you mated before?"_ She asked. " _Yes."_ Featherbeak answered simply, with a sleepy yawn; " _I have helped raise_ _a few_ _chicks to adulthood over the course of the seasons –_ _and,_ _my offspring have gone to find their own way in life as we all must. Where they are now, I do not know – I have seen only one in the years since, and it was before she'd decided to fly far, far away to claim territory for herself."_ Featherbeak said, fluttering down gently from his branch and landing somewhat ungracefully on one nearer the ground that was already shielded from the late evening sun by the canopy of the forest. It was where Nidoran would sit and looked up at him like she always did when she wanted to talk.

" _Will I ever mate?"_ Nidoran asked Featherbeak with the boundless, frank, and youthful curiosity of all young creatures. " _That is not for me to say, my dear; in my time on this mountain, I have seen none your kind roam this wilderness, male or female. There are more of your kind elsewhere in the world to be sure, but, they do not call_ _these_ _forests home – there's no telling who you'll meet if you decide to venture out into the world eventually."_ Featherbeak said, clicking his beak slightly, and stretching his wings again. " _How will I know what to do?"_ She asked, pressing Featherbeak for more answers. Featherbeak was silent for a moment, cocking his head at the funny angle he did when in deep thought.

" _It's not something you really rehearse for – usually when the moment arrives, your instincts take hold, and the rest happens naturally. However, some creatures such as the Stanler, enter a period of heightened attraction to each other – the females exude a special scent called a pheromone that males find irresistible; in such cases, things happen in their own time, and from what I remember seeing, you'll have no shortage of help from the male – they will be unable to leave you alone, and you won't_ _want_ _them to."_ Featherbeak said, amusement coloring his voice.

" _As for_ _others like me, I am_ _somewhat freer in choosing the time and place because Noctowl seasonal 'heats' are less pronounced. However, instead of simply relying on the changing of the seasons like me, if you are anything like a Stanler doe, you may notice yourself entering periods of heightened desire once you're older… Although for what or of whom, in your solitary existence, I can't say."_ Featherbeak said. Nidoran sat on her rump, mulling these thoughts over in her head.

" _I've never really observed your kind before; unfortunately, I can't really say if your species prefer living in groups, pairs, or – like me – alone, as you are now."_ Featherbeak replied; on that subject, the Nidoran's curiosity grasped her. " _Stanler travel in large groups together. Where are_ _your_ _mates?"_ She asked, gazing up at him with wonder. " _The Stanler are herd creatures – it is their nature to travel together, for there is safety in numbers. Noctowls prefer to live alone; less fighting over prey, dens, and territory, you see. I'm old – knowing that there are few other Noctowls in this area to challenge me for_ _anything_ _is quite a relief, let me tell you."_ Featherbeak replied.

" _As I said, all Pokemon are different; for my kind, being alone is convenient, and comfortable. Barring mating season, we rarely spend much time together after the success or failure of raising chicks to parenthood."_ Something in Featherbeak's tone made Nidoran perk her ears slightly. " _Failure?"_ She asked, again pressing the old bird with her insatiable curiosity; Featherbeak was silent for a long while at this – the Nidorina waited patiently, expecting him to respond as he always did; after all, he had never withheld information about life or survival from her before.

Something – perhaps her wide and curious eyes, so much like a newborn Hoothoot chick's – finally compelled the old bird to speak. " _Sometimes, young will not survive to see adulthood; it may be the result of inexperienced parents, a constant string of bad weather, lack of available food in the area, or bad Pokemon – hungry or hostile ones. Sometimes, hatchlings simply aren't born right – they will be doomed from the moment they leave the egg, if they leave it at all… And to my knowledge, there is nothing to be done to help them, or prevent such sickliness. They will die in the nest… And life on the mountain goes on."_ Featherbeak said, turning to preen a wing with unusual focus in the silence that followed.

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"You know, you sure are getting to be awful friendly all of a sudden." Alex remarked with mild amusement; the Nidorina only stared up at him – though he'd never worked with Pokemon closely in his life before, the teenager could tell immediately there was an aura of intelligence in the intent, watchful way she regarded him, and privately he wondered if perhaps on some level she could understand him.

However, thoughts turned away from the curious blue Pokémon to Alex's present predicament: _Time's a-wasting; the longer you sit here, the less chance you have of_ _finding someone or at least making it up the rest of the way up this mountain to some kind of recognizable landmark…_ _Unless,_ _it'_ _s already_ _time to give up and go home with your tail tucked between your legs?_ Alex thought. Again the terrible conundrum of the mountain presented itself, and Alex realized he'd come no closer to solving the riddle than before the Nidorina had distracted him with her needy behavior.

 _I could turn back; I really didn't think my trip out here through enough… But I've come so far. Maybe just another couple of hours of hiking wouldn't hurt…_ Alex thought. After drinking some more water for good measure and checking that his bottles were full from the stream as well, he turned to Nidorina. "Well… I guess we'll see what lies further up the mountain. If I don't see some kind of sign that we're on track to make the tunnel network entrances, then I'll give up… And then, we'll decide what to do about each other." He announced to the blue, somewhat hesitantly.

The Nidorina cocked her head, staring at him with her seemingly harsh red-eyed stare; Alex grinned in spite of himself, and tentatively reached a hand out, scratching her muzzle. "...You know, I hate to say it, but you're actually starting to grow on me a little." Alex remarked dryly, more to himself than to the Nidorina – as he turned to follow back the trail she'd led him on, she stood as well, already falling in step beside the human easily.


	4. Chapter 4

" _Where in the world are you leading us, you crazy human!? Don't you remember the encounter with the Graveller?"_ Nidorina asked aloud in exasperation a while later – predictably, the human only glanced at her, not at all understanding her vocalizations. Even so, he responded in kind with human babble, and what was probably intended to be a reassuring pat on the head; the Nidorina's ears flattened slightly, but, for lack of anything better to do, she followed.

Dangerous or no, the human was a welcome break from the monotony of foraging and sleeping – and, on some level, the Nidorina welcomed his companionship, even if he couldn't communicate with her like Featherbeak could. Eventually with the sun high above and a fair amount of mountain behind them, the terrain grew far steeper and less forgiving, and more than once their route had to wend through the forested regions of the mountainside – steep, impassable rock faces barred their way more than once.

Eventually the human muttered something to himself, clearly irritated, and crumpled up the flat object in his hand that he had been studying since they left the stream; the Nidorina sniffed the wadded up ball out of curiosity, but gleaned nothing useful from the mostly odorless object. Eventually though, the blue female's stomach growled, and the human slowed his pace, instead turning to follow her again as she poked around in the grasses and brush for food. Eventually, the exhausted human slowed to a stop, sitting on a felled log; he removed his outer-foot and rubbed the nub within gently with his fore-feet, vocalizing what must have been complaints about the distance they traveled.

The Nidorina had scarcely allowed the human out of her eyesight to continue foraging on her own when a terrified yelp brought her running back – the human scuttled away on his rump from the log, which evidently served as the lair of an Ekans that was more than a little upset at the human's disturbing of its log-home. The sight of the purple and gold serpent set Alex's pulse to pounding in his ears; the hissing creature slithered along with lightning speed, mouth agape and its fangs poised to chomp down on his ankle. Alex's back slammed into the hard, unmoving rigidness of a tree trunk, trapping him – he had nowhere to go.

 _Stamp_ _!_ The serpent's angry hiss was cut abruptly short as its entire head and neck disappeared under one of the Nidorina's forefeet an instant before its fangs buried themselves in Alex's leg; the Nidorina growled in annoyance and ground the Ekans underfoot for a moment, as its wildly thrashing body coiled, uncoiled, and writhed around – then, it went limp. The Nidorina cautiously regarded the slack form of the Ekans – quickly and watchfully she removed her foot; immediately, the defeated creature tensed and slithered off back to the safety of its hole, no longer at all interested in pursuing the human that had disturbed it, or more accurately the Nidorina intervening on his behalf; annoyed, she watched the serpent until it disappeared – had she hesitated even a second longer, this bite would have certainly been the human's last.

" _NIDO!"_

Alex cowered before the reproachful snarl of the angry Nidorina – her already naturally harsh expression turned into a livid, withering glare as she advanced to the point that she physically stood over him; Alex shrank down, unable take his eyes off the Nidorina's smoldering ruby eyes now that she was practically nose-to-nose with him: _Get your head out of your ass before you get yourself killed, idiot!_ Alex blinked in bewilderment; though the blue female had not spoken a word of English, her expression, tone, and posture made the meaning of her harsh growl unmistakable – she was chastising him sharply for his carelessness.

 _I'm doing so poorly_ _out here that_ _this Pokémon is having to train_ _me_ _,_ Alex thought, humiliated; moisture collected in his eyes, and utter discouragement crushed his flagging spirits – evidently satisfied that she had successfully gotten her point across the entirely too reckless and inattentive human, the Nidorina blew a sharp snort of disgust through her nose, turned, and strode off to resume her foraging.

Alex was glad; though he knew she was just a Pokemon, the idea of the Nidorina seeing him cry was too much for his already crushed pride to bear. When at last he composed himself, he propped himself up. _I can't keep doing this. I'm not at all cut out to be a trainer – not now, not ever._ He thought woefully to himself. "Nid––" Alex's voice caught in his throat; it was hoarse, and cracked. After clearing it and trying to keep the emotion out of it, the human called out again, very _carefully_ setting off in the direction he'd seen her sniffing off in.

When the human finally caught up to the Nidorina several minutes later, the human's body language showed contrition with every step – she winced, but said nothing; for all his remorse, he seemed to be doubly cautious as before about where he placed his feet, and in doing so avoided what may have been the entrance to another Ekans burrow in the roots of a nearby tree. _Well… At least you're learning. That's the important part._ The Nidorina thought to herself, allowing her even poorer mood to lighten just a hair – she was sitting at the base of a wild apple tree, frustrated by the delicious morsels hanging just out of her reach.

The lowest hanging fruits had already been eaten by passersby in the area; all that remained were the ones nearer the top of the tree. Already frustrated by the stir of emotions the clumsy human had caused her earlier that day, the Nidorina half considered attacking the tree itself – however, she knew without bothering that it would likely be a pointless endeavor – it was a stout young tree that could probably easily withstand her ire.

With her almost comically squat legs and claws, the Nidorina could not even begin to climb the tree – instead, she blew out a sigh of defeat, and dejectedly turned her back on perhaps the third apple tree she had ever seen in her entire life, empty-mouthed and empty-bellied. The human said a single word to the Nidorina; the blue's ears perked up at the sound, and at first, her frustration almost saw her ignore the call and continue foraging elsewhere.

However, a sense of guilt at being so harsh with the human washed over her, as she paused very briefly to think: _how many rock-headed mistakes did I make as a pup? Featherbeak was patient with me through them all – for all I know, this two-legs, as large as he is, could be the human equivalent of a hatchling or at least a pup himself._ The flash of intuition struck the Nidorina – the more she paused to mull his actions, the more certain she became of the human's fledgling status; chewing on this line of thought for a few moments, the docile female's temper soon cooled away until it was replaced by a vague sense of regret as she turned to regard the human.

Satisfied that he had gotten her attention, the human removed his hump, and studied the lowest, thickest boughs of the tree for… What? The blue female could only watch silently as he approached, seizing them in his paws and attempting to shake the tree: nothing happened. "Hmm… Maybe if we shook it harder––" The Nidorina began, intending to use her trunk-like legs to better effect; however, the human ignored her, and after a moment changed tactics. To the Nidorina's surprise, he jumped and grabbed one of the thicker branches with his spindly forelegs and toes a moment later, and with some visible effort, hauled himself up further into the tree, easily within reach of the lowest of the fruits.

 _Well, well… Perhaps those funny_ _stick-_ _legs are worth something after all; not even I could ever manage doing that._ The Nidorina thought, as the human carefully wormed his way further up the tree – more than once the blue female's breath caught in her throat as branches the human had used for a hand-hold snapped unexpectedly under his weight; with his spindly forearms, he seized one of the smaller branches laden with apples and gave it a much more vigorous shake than before, and thankfully, it was only apples and no humans that rained to the forest floor a moment later.

 _Aha!_ The Nidorina thought, immediately setting upon one of the fruits – with a brisk and satisfying crunch, she eagerly devoured the first apple she'd had in _years_. More of them rained to the ground by the branch load, pattering to the dirt; soon, the ground was covered in a bounty of the fruits, and the sweating human turned his gaze toward the land below him.

Chewing on a second apple, core and all, the Nidorina watched as the human let himself hang down from the branch by his forearms, then fell the short rest of the distance to the ground to land on his rear feet. _Well done – these are delicious!_ The Nidorina thought to herself; the guilt from snapping at the human redoubled; he was at least useful in his own odd way, she realized – he had done something she could not, even in his comparative weakness. The human tossed aside a moldier specimen of apple that had already been picked at by birds, and selected a fresh specimen – Nidorina blinked as he offered it to her. Somewhat remorsefully, the blue female accepted the human's peace offering, being careful not to bite his spindly toes as she did so.

By the time she finished eating the first, he offered a second, picking them off the ground to feed to her, until she'd eaten her fill of the delicious fruits – soon he too was eating them, and when he at last got his fill, the Nidorina watched as he began gathering a number of them to put inside his hump. " _I haven't had an apple since Featherbeak brought me_ _some_ _quite a long time ago…. Thank you."_ The Nidorina vocalized, though she'd already come to expect ignorance from the human, who indeed did not respond in any meaningful way. Once the human's hump was fat with the fallen apples, the duo resumed their trek up the mountain.

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Hours later, the falling evening sun spelled the end of another day, and soon, the human's attention seemed to finally turn away from the trail. Alex paused to regard their situation: Out of frustration with the utterly useless map, he'd wadded the thing up and thrown it away much earlier in the day. The distance to the peak was now much closer than the distance to the summit, and that tiny detail presented a host of unpleasant considerations: _Unless I screwed up and bypassed it completely_ _during_ _the incident with the Spearow, then perhaps the reason I haven't found the entrance to the cave network is because I haven't been on the right trail – I_ _know_ _we should have run into the entrance to the lower tunnels by now; we're already_ _probably over_ _thirds of the way up the mountain._ Alex thought, cursing the fact that he had not thought to study the route more closely in advance of this outing.

Another day's worth of hiking would finally bring him to the peak, and he might even reach it sooner than that if he hurried. _Maybe there's a traveler's information board with all the routes I could have taken at the top; if I can find the trail I was_ _supposed_ _to take all along, I'll have no problems finding my way back down,_ Alex thought, pausing to regard the small bathtub-sized depression they now stood in; _Well… This spot is as good as any other, I guess; we may as well set up camp here for the night,_ Alex decided, a few moments later. After carefully inspecting the clearing for signs of unwanted visitors, only then did Alex deign to remove his pack and unfurl his sleeping bag; having experienced the ritual of making camp already twice before, the Nidorina evidently realized this meant no further travel for the night, and so she joined him sitting on the hard ground.

The Nidorina glanced around – if there was anything to be had in the way of food in the area, she would likely have a hard time finding it; in all her life this was as high as she'd ever dared to venture up the mountain – the territory was utterly unfamiliar, and the only thing the Nidorina had to draw on for familiarity was the human. "If we intend to find food, we better do it before the sun sets; the upper slopes only get more dangerous from he–you're not listening to a word I'm saying, are you?" Nidorina asked tiredly; the human paused to chatter something out loud upon hearing her stomach growl, and then rummaged around in his hump – the blue female blinked in surprise as he withdrew an apple, and offered it to her.

At first, the Nidorina sniffed it, unnerved – it didn't smell bad, even after all the time it spent in the human's hump. _P_ _erhaps_ _that hump's_ _not a part of his body at all,_ she realized, even though it seemed to be made out of the same material that his removable skin was. The apple crunched in her mouth just as crisply as it had earlier that day; when it was gone, she found herself wishing for another – to her excitement, he extracted several more, and fed them to her; she had forgotten his curious ritual of filling his hump with them until now. The light dinner of apple was eventually followed by the water bottles, which the blue had little trouble drinking from now that she understood them.

When at last the Nidorina had ate and drank her fill, the human began to eat as well; Nidorina sat, mulling his actions: Saving fruit and water from earlier had been a stroke of genius that had eluded Nidorina until now – how would she carry water, if not within her belly? _Put your fears to rest._ The sudden intrusion of the thought made Nidorina freeze – oblivious, the human chewed on an apple, and took a swig of water from his container.

The blue female blinked at the peculiar thought, which was followed by another: _the human you just saw will love and care for you – it is a burrow-mate, an ally._ The words from the ball rang out in her mind, and she glanced at the human, lost in his own world as he continued to eat and drink; ' _it' is actually a 'he'._ The Nidorina absently corrected the ball; _Together you can become close friends, if you would only give_ _it_ _the opportunity._ What was love or friendship to a creature that had only ever known solitude?

 _Having something to eat sure helped; the sugar did me some good._ Alex thought – he burped, and tasted apple. _We'll need to seek out that river again in the morning; I'm all out of water._ Although he was not 'out of the woods yet' so to speak, any lingering poison from the Nidorina's saliva had evidently worked its way out of Alex's body over the course of the day – thanks to the bounty of wild fruit, fresh water, and clean mountain air, Alex had felt much better then than he had in quite a while; again, the teenager paused to consider how good it felt to be in the great outdoors, in spite of the poor experiences he'd had along the way.

A moment later, the Nidorina unexpectedly wormed her way closer to Alex, until she was resting against his side – the action caused a grin to tug at one side of Alex's mouth; again, the Nidorina did not object to the human laying a hand on her side and beginning to pet her. "You may be covered in poisonous spines, but you're just a big old softy, aren'tcha?" Alex muttered to himself quietly, as she rested her head on her forepaws.

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The Nidorina peered into the darkness of a cave entrance she'd never seen or heard of before hesitantly late the next evening, and then glanced at the human nervously; although she of course couldn't speak to him with words, her grunted response communicated her meaning well enough: _you're not seriously thinking of going in there, are you?_ "Well… It's not the cave opening I was hoping for, but it _**is**_ still a cave opening… That's something, right? Maybe it's connected to the tunnel network I was trying to get to all along..." Alex as much asked himself aloud as he said it to the blue. A noise from inside the cave brought their attention back to it instantly – Alex's rhetorical question, spoken aloud, reverberated deeply within the cave, and a moment later, the human belatedly realized it reverberated a little _too_ deeply.

"Zubat!" Alex cried in alarm, as a swarm of Zubat fluttered out of the cave, chittering and squeaking as they fled the cave and passed right over Alex, and into the gathering dusk. Getting up from where he'd thrown himself on the floor, he looked out first at the eyeless creatures, and then at Nidorina. "...Sorry." He apologized sheepishly, petting her cheek apologetically – and receiving another somewhat half-hearted prick of admonishment for his troubles. "Hey, I said I was sorry!" He said, wincing at the pain of the jab – quietly he squeezed a drop of blood from some of the pricks in his skin, and swallowed nervously.

It had been the second time that day the Nidorina had stabbed him – the first had been on accident – but in both cases, the stings did not seem to result in the near-fatal full-body sickness the first prick had; luckily instead, his hand flushed a few shades red, puffed up a little, and tingled uncomfortably. Now that the puny human seemed to have finally toughened up and built the resistance to withstand a simple jab, the Nidorina evidently treated the gesture as more of an annoyed reproach rather than an attack.

Scratching the palm where she jabbed him, his mind returned to that first terrible poisoning: Even if he wasn't allergic to it, that first accidental exposure to the Nidorina's venom should have been fatal... And for some inexplicable reason, it hadn't been. Furthermore, she'd envenomated him several more times by now in small amounts, both accidentally and purposefully, with gradually lessening side-effects. _Maybe I'm just getting used to it;_ _just as well – even Ekans charmers have to build up a resistance to their poison so they don't die when they get bit_ _._ The human mused, as the Nidorina approached the cave tentatively to take a sniff.

Another noise – a distant but loud rumble from inside the cave – caught Alex's attention again, and he regarded the inky blackness with some trepidation, the faint tickling sensation building in his palm already forgotten; he swallowed, wondering what lay within the bowels of the mountain – no Zubat in the world could have made the noise he'd just heard. Briefly, Alex considered stopping and making camp for the night there at the lip of the cave – but then again, night and day held no meaning when the light of the sun did not reach below the surface of the mountain, and it might have been a noise made by another person and their pokemon.

"...Well… I guess now would be as good a time as any to do some exploring, with the Zubat and Goldbat gone for the night. Or day...Whatever." Alex muttered aloud, taking off his pack and digging around inside it for a moment. A moment later, he thumbed the button on a flashlight and aimed it into the cave – beside him, Nidorina vocalized shock, staring in surprise at the light. She stared at the device for a moment, sniffing the metal body and then trying to sniff the beam itself – electricity and artificial light were clearly alien concepts to the Nidorina. However, any amusement at the wild creature's surprise with the flashlight died prematurely as Alex very cautiously took a step into the cave, shining the light around. Perhaps intrigued by the flashlight, the Nidorina followed him in.

 _Light in the darkness! What will these crazy humans think of next?_ Nidorina wondered silently, as she put nose to dirt and began sifting through the plethora of new smells; it went without saying that she'd never entered any of the caves on the mountain, even by herself – curiosity as much as a desire to not be separated from the human in such alien territory prodded her along. The rather unpleasant stench of Zubat dung dominated this part of the cave, but still, there were many stimuli that she'd never heard that did interest her – in spite of better judgment, she stopped to nibble a mushroom that glowed with a faint blue light that she'd never seen before that grew on the walls of the cave itself, and spat it out for the bitter taste.

Rumbles from deep within the mountain constantly tugged at her keen ears; whether this was normal, or the result of a pokemon, she did not know – and judging by his skittish movements, neither did the human. After only a few minutes of walking, the noises of the cave seemed to intensify in degrees – _so much for hoping the noises being natural;_ _I hope there isn't another Graveler in here_ , the blue thought nervously, as the noise seemed to 'open up' or spread out.

A moment later the Nidorina realized why, as the sensation of the cave walls pressing in on her suddenly vanished – and the human's light went from shining on the cave ceiling, to a vast cavern in which the light barely reached some distance away. "Whoaaa..." The human said aloud, likely echoing her shock that such a large space could have been located underground – and so close to the surface, it seemed.

The noises the human made clearly bespoke of his awe and excitement at seeing such a thing – but to Nidorina, the sight only sparked a sense of fear and mounting dread; in the cave they might have been safe... But here, clearly something bigger roamed, and she had a sinking feeling she knew what it was. " _I think we should leave. Now._ " The blue tried to tell the human, who only patted her once on the head and took a step forward.

As he did, the human stumbled. "Hey, what the–?" He asked, shining the light on a small rock outcropping on the floor. " _Geodude_." It grunted, suddenly hoisting itself upright on a pair of rocky arms. "Hey. Where did you come from?" Alex asked, backing away from it hurriedly; half out of habit by now, Nidorina immediately interposed herself between it and the human in spite of the nervousness she felt. Another rumble interrupted the Geodude's next response – ignoring them now, it hurriedly jumped from where it had been sitting, off of what apparently was a ledge in the cavern that they had not seen in the dark.

The Geodude disappeared from view, but the loud crack of its rock body hitting the ground not far below, echoed like a gun shot in the cavern loudly. "What–" The human was about to speak, when the cavern itself shifted. _Of all the holes this idiotic beast had to drag us in, it was HERE..._ The Nidorina thought in horror, her eyes dilating as the interior of the mountain began moving in front of them in the darkness. Perhaps paralyzed by fear, or not possessing the eyesight necessary to see, the human did not react immediately – after what seemed like an eternity, he turned away from where the Geodude had fled, and shone the light directly ahead of them.

" _ **Grroooarrrrh.**_ _"_

The deep and powerful voice that made the noise seemed to fill every available space in the cavern with the sound alone, and Alex finally gained the presence of mind to shine the light _across_ the cavern itself, and not just at the ceiling... Except there was no other side – the cavern seemed to end right in front of them now. Following a peculiar rock formation in the center of the cavern, Alex nearly dropped the flashlight when the beam glinted off something metallic in the rock itself, and then shone directly into a tremendous eye easily as big as he was. The eye blinked, then narrowed.

" _ **GRRROOOAAAARHHHHR!**_ "

The Onix thundered, evidently displeased with having intruders in its lair. " _RUN!"_ The Nidorina tried to warn the human over the noise, but he stood, rooted to the spot in fear. With her voice lost in the thundering of rock and Earth, the blue could only react; chomping down on the human's leg and jerking tremendously, the blue threw him over her shoulder, and began dashing back up the passage blindly as fast as her stout legs would propel her – the flashlight fell from the human's hand and clattered away to the cave floor, bathing in them in darkness. Now completely without the ability to see and with an angry giant at their tails, the black gloom of the cave seemed to gain a tangible, malignant presence, as if the Earth itself was ready to swallow them whole.

"RUN FOR OUR LIVES!" Alex tried to yell to the Nidorina, although he hardly needed to bother; in fact, her quick reactions had bought them a precious second of time – the Onix, distracted by the flashlight, paused only briefly to watch it with uncertainty; the light rolled off the ledge and tumbled through empty space for a moment, briefly dazzling the stone serpent as the beam spilled randomly across the interior of the cavern, until it landed on the cavern floor with a crack, and the light died. No longer distracted, the Onix instantly fixated on the small tunnel the two had fled.

" _ **GRROARRHHR!**_ " It bellowed, ramming its nose into the opening and beginning to undulate, burrowing powerfully and widening the tunnel with each boring motion of its massive stone body. Clinging to the Nidorina's neck and body like a meowth on a screen door, Alex fought the urge to wet himself in terror as the cavern began shaking even more than riding on Nidorina's back already jostled him around.

Rocks fell from the ceiling and battered them both, as the Onix continued its chase – Alex tightened his grip, knowing that if he slipped and fell off the blue female and fell behind, death was assured. Seconds seemed to stretch into years – Alex dared not even shift so much as an inch long enough to look behind them, and he could only wonder if the hellish rumble all around meant the Onix was just inches away from biting the Nidorina's tail. Then suddenly, the echoes of the cave ceased, and an extremely dim measure of light in the form of stars high above returned.

"-NIIIIIIIIIIII-DORINA–"

"-UN FASTER-"

"- _ **OOOARR**_!"

Suddenly, both Alex and the Nidorina's screams no echoed in the emptiness of the mountainside, as she burst from the cave mouth into the cold air of twilight. The rumbling beneath her feet compelled Nidorina to continue running for dear life and she tried to dash for the safety of the trail back down from the cavern – except the rock faltered beneath her clawed feet. The Onix, intent only on chasing them and not paying attention to where it went, burst through the mountainside like a Jack-in-the-box; the face of the mountainside exploded outward, and the Nidorina stumbled.

Unaware of its precarious position at the top of the mountain, the Onix belatedly attempted to stop its wild bull rush, by trying to coil back on itself – and only succeeded in destroying the trail path and everything around it. For just a moment, the giant stone serpent seemed to float almost weightlessly through the air as the collapsing mountain face buckled under it; unfortunately, Nidorina and Alex, caught in the rockslide, they also seemed to share that timeless moment.

Screaming at the top of their lungs, all three began a wild tumble down the mountainside, and Alex fell free of the Nidorina, despite his scrabbling after her wildly; tumbling head over heels, she disappeared from his view into the darkness the instant he latched tightly upon a large irregularly shaped boulder in which he prayed he might ride out the rockslide like a toboggan. Alex screamed a wordless, terrified shriek the moment he realized the rock he clung to was the Onix's head, whipping about wildly as the serpent desperately tried to control its own wild descent.

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Though his body certainly may not have been what it used to be, as an old Featherbeak still had fairly sharp hearing for a Noctowl his age. Even so, it didn't require the hearing of a Zubat to be able hear the thunderous peal of shattering rock somewhere far above on the mountain; Featherbeak froze where he sat on a branch giving himself his "morning" preening, already going cold with dread. Instantly, his sharp mind redoubled his worrying about the trouble-prone human the Nidorina, and the discussion he'd had with her the night before.

"Arceus, _no_!" He squawked, sending more feathers flying than he intended, and hurriedly searched for the source of the commotion – which again, seemed to be getting much louder as the seconds past. Though it had still been early enough he'd been considering relaxing a while yet still before embarking on the punishingly exhaustive task of hunting prey, Featherbeak's worry and anxiety drove him to propel his ailing body into the sky – when he cleared the canopy of his favorite tree, the sight that greeted him nearly caused him to freeze in dumbstruck wonder, and fall right back out of the sky.

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" _ **GRROAAAARHR!**_ " The onix bellowed in its own terror, as it continued to gain more and more speed in spite of its attempts at slowing down. Alex by now had already screamed himself hoarse, and continued to clutch onto the serpentine being's rock horn for dear life – of the Nidorina, he could not see. An instant later, the Onix turned on itself as it fell, trying to slither back up the hill, and Alex guessed why – the empty blackness of what was probably a sheer drop loomed ahead... And, it seemed far too close for them to avoid.

Again, they were falling as they went over it – torn free from from the beast's head by the violence of the tumble, Alex fell together nearly side-by-side with the Onix, which narrowly missed slamming into or flattened Alex twice through sheer luck alone; no longer guided by rational thought, Alex latched onto some portion of the beast's body the moment it passed under him – together they careened until it slammed belly-first into the ground, bleeding off much of the falling creature's speed at the cost of nearly flattening its human passenger nearly on the spot. Winded and unable to move, but thankful for having the Onix to break his fall with its body, Alex looked up in time to see all the boulders kicked up by their descent now beginning to tumble down the mountain, raining upon them.

Still gasping for breath and knocked partially silly by the final great impact at the bottom of the rock face they had fallen over, Alex could only watch and pray that the largest of the boulders would not crush him to the consistency of pasta sauce as they slammed all around him, at times sending up great shards of rock chips that cut, bruised, and gashed wherever they hit. The Onix beneath him groaned loudly, but began to recover sooner than he; wrapping an arm weakly around a shaft of rock jutting directly outward from the creature's body, Alex prevented himself from being tossed like a rag doll from it.

Shaking the fuzz from his mind, the human realized the only perpendicular formation of rock on an Onix was on its head – and he now sat atop it again. Blinking, the Onix shook its head, and again nearly sent him flying, had he not gripped on tightly again. " _ **Gr**_ _ **o**_ _ **ghhhh?**_ " It rumbled in confusion, feeling the extra weight of Alex's body on its head, but unable to see him. Alex tried to say nothing, hoping it would not notice him – and cursed when it shook again, but harder this time in an effort to dislodge its human passenger.

Unable to hold on any longer in his condition, Alex was swept from its head and landed on the ground; the air whooshed from the human's lungs as his breath was knocked from him, and gasping for breath, he lay paralyzed for a moment. A glint of light flashed in the light of the moon, shining off the same thing on its head that caught the light from his flashlight in the cave; Alex did not have time to ponder its significance any longer, as the shadow of the Onix's head silhouetted against the pale full moon above fixated on him – it was clearly ready to make Alex pay for the inordinate amount of punishment it had just experienced.

Saying a brief prayer for a swift and relatively painless death as the Onix reared up, Alex was caught wholly unprepared when the Nidorina – considerably more gracefully riding atop a falling boulder as Alex had intended – used it as a springboard. Twisting as she descended, the fierce blue caught the Onix the neck with a powerful, whip-like blow from her stout tail; reeling from the unexpectedly harsh attack, the Onix slammed into the ground, laying still for a moment.

The Nidorina danced back, panting heavily and covered in what Alex hoped fervently were also superficial injuries; the Onix rose again, regarding its newest tormentor with a mixture of nervousness and frustration – what should have been an easy kill against two runt opponents had resulted instead in the flattening of the giant rock Pokemon as many times already; the Onix was beginning to lose the stomach for the fight.

Still, the rock pokemon picked itself up to as much of its full stature as it could, and fixated on the Nidorina. Before Alex could say anything, the blue charged headlong at the Onix – this time, the stone serpent was prepared for the pest's dangerous tail; bobbing back like a coiled Arbok, the Onix leaned away from the Nidorina's iron tail, and shot forward. Alex cried out in wordless horror as Nidorina drifted to within the Onix's reach; the rock serpent immediately began to coil around the spot where the Nidorina, the most dangerous of its two opponents, would fall.

The blue had scarcely touched the ground when the Onix's rock body closed in around her in a crushing bind. Roaring its superiority as the Nidorina cried out in pain as the life began to get squeezed from her, the Onix squeezed even harder around the Nidorina, tightening the bind; "NO!" Alex cried out in utter anguish - the Nidorina's plaintive cries for help and of agony stung him to the core. Utter revulsion for himself, and for the Onix filled the human.

Nidorina began to see even more stars than the ones in the night sky above. _The pain… Can't concentrate… Human…!_ The Nidorina thought, when she caught sight of a movement in the dark. His words were unintelligible, but against all odds, the human was there – with a rock in his hand no less. The Nidorina absently watched in shock as the human reared back with every ounce of strength in his comparatively pathetic form, and slammed the rock into the Onix's massive side, pounding desperately, savagely, in a vain attempt to free her. _Stupid as ever,_ the Nidorina thought absently – her lungs, constricted past the point of being able to inflate, burned and cried out in need of oxygen. _Stupid... But brave. So be it; we'll both go down then,_ the blue thought, growing fainter by the second.

"Let her go!" Alex yelled wildly, as the rock cracked and fell apart in his hand from the force of a blow; his fingers felt smashed, but the human hardly paid any attention to the wound; the Onix did not release its bind, and instead, the crazed rock serpent fixated on the human, which had foolishly wandered right into biting range; the Onix tensed to strike, mouth wide, its throat grinding out a menacing roar of victory.

 _WHAM!_

Alex's eyes could barely make out the shape of something poorly outlined in the darkening sky slammed directly into the Onix's face powerfully enough to toss its head in the direction of the impact like a boxer that had been punched too hard. The force of the impact staggered the rock pokemon; a stupefied rumble of pain and shock escaped the Onix, and it swayed unsteadily for a moment, evidently knocked utterly senseless – unfortunately, the form that had collided bodily with the Onix bounced right off, shedding feathers as it fell lifelessly to the dirt a short distance away.

Already struggling to maintain his balance on the shifting creature, the erratic movements of the creature's grip loosening slightly pitched the human forward into the creature's coils. A groan from the shadows right before him made Alex realize he was now evidently nearly face to face with the trapped Nidorina, and the concern for the poor creature galvanized his mind: _I've got to get her out of here_ _while that Onix is still stunned_ _!_ Alex thought, seizing the creature and tugging with all his might.

Fear, anger, and adrenaline mixed; Alex ignored the pain of poisonous spines digging into his hands as he pulled on the Nidorina again – gasping for breath now that she could work her lungs somewhat, the blue began to help fight for her own freedom by helping scrabble up the creature's rocky body, clawing her way up before the thing tensed again. Alex gave another tremendous pull, and the Nidorina was wrenched free of the Onix's slackened grip at once – still scrabbling for purchase on the Onix's stone body, the Nidorina launched herself upward into Alex's arms, upsetting his balance and causing them both to tumble head over heels backward off the creature's body, to land in a pile in the dirt next to the prostrate form of their would-be savior.

The Onix shook its large head to clear it of its daze and retreated a fair distance; it snapped its jaw shut once, testing its function, turning to face them yet again - or rather, the creature that had interrupted its crushing of the life from the meddlesome blue pest. Evidently, on the cusp of being crushed into oblivion, the Nidorina had not seen the timely intervention of the third combatant; now though, she spared a lightning glance at what now occupied the Onix's attention, and in doing so did a full double-take in horror as she spotted the prostrate ball of feathers lying in a heap almost beside her.

" _Featherbeak!"_

Nidorina cried out in grief, throwing herself at the ground beside the elderly bird – he stirred weakly. An eternity seemed to pass; the blue's pupils dilated to pinpricks as an uncharacteristic rage began to clutch at the Nidorina's heart – lips curling, the blue rounded on the Onix, snarling ferociously like a rabid Growlithe and beginning to slip into a rage so terrible that it made every spine on her body stand straight up.

Though Alex had never personally seen the pokemon laying beside them before, he did not miss the the blue's reaction – whatever the significance of this unexpected third combatant was, now that it was injured the Nidorina was clearly out for blood… And, though still not yet defeated, the Onix evidently recognized this and shrank back slightly, growling a warning threat at the Nidorina that went unheeded as the blue advanced forward a step, and then another, her bared, gritted teeth flashing in the moonlight.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:** For those of you readers that are interested, I've drawn a picture of the Featherbeak and it's available to be viewed on my deviantART profile. Simply visit deviantART, use search term 'Featherbeak', and it should be the very first result to pop up (I'd post the link here, but this website seems to block me from posting any URL's).

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"Shhhh! Shhhh, it's okay, it's alright – it's alright! _Shhh!_ " Alex whispered soothingly at the wounded creature beside him, which woke with a start and flapped once weakly, evidently startled into trying to flee by Alex's sudden presence; two ponderous wide eyes flashed in the moonlight as the avian creature looked up at the human. The Onix roared loudly from behind Alex, startling him and reminding him he was by no means out of danger this close to an ongoing battle. The fallen Pokémon squawked raggedly – _I've got to get us out of here!_ Alex realized, as the Nidorina attacked.

More soothing words from Alex served to calm the wounded creature until he could gently scoop it up – it was a bird of some kind, and after only a moment, did not resist Alex's attempts to pick it up. "Good bird! Shhh, good bird!" Alex cooed reassuringly at the injured Pokémon as he got to his feet. "Look, we're leaving now – see? Leaving." The human said aloud as much to himself as he did to the Onix, which hardly paid him a second glance – it was instead focused on the Nidorina that still advanced threateningly at it.

"Nidorina–" Alex tried to call her, but the Onix snarled, rumbling forward; Alex cried fruitlessly for the Nidorina to flee with him, but the angered blue stood her ground; cradling the fallen Pokemon in his arms, Alex fled onto a thin game trail that led away from the scene of the battle. He glanced over his shoulder and spotted the shadow of the Nidorina charging at the Onix, the two illuminated by the moonlight – it side-slithered right around her, already beginning to work its way into another bind. "NO!" Alex yelled, freezing in his tracks; the Onix's body slammed in around the Nidorina - and then the beast yelled aloud, uncoiling as if stung.

 _The stingers on her body!_ Alex realized only a moment later; evidently, the Nidorina had learned from her prior experience with the Onix's bind, and extended her spines – the Onix had not. It hurriedly released the spiny creature from within its coils, and the shadow of the Nidorina's form flitted up onto the Onix's back, gaining speed as she ran along its serpentine body toward its head; the Onix squirmed, but the Nidorina was not deterred. The rock serpent froze, resorting in desperation to flexing its rocky body as tightly as it could – hardening to raise its defense – as the blue female finished gathering momentum, and leaped toward it as it turned.

 _WHAM!_

The Nidorina's forehead collided with the Onix's cheek where it had been hit already twice before by her iron tail and their avian savior's take-down, knocking the Onix to the ground, groaning in pain. The blue landed on her rump and tumbled backwards once or twice, but shook her head hard and struggled to her feet a moment later. Amazingly, the Onix righted itself too, weak but _still_ undefeated. The Nidorina gazed up at the Onix hatefully; pain or not, the memory of Featherbeak still shone fresh in her mind, so again she took a determined step forward.

Sensing her resolve, the Onix gathered its strength – and burrowed face-first into the ground, fleeing while it still could. The black outline of its rocky tail disappeared in a cloud of dust, dirt, and shards of rock; Nidorina faltered slightly, and fell onto a flank for a moment, totally exhausted – though her head still spun, she willed memories of the battle to settle into place in her mind. The brief meditation on the experience of the battle left her feeling a smidgen better, and feeling a little stronger for the experience – but, that small burst of relief only lasted long enough for her to remember her fallen friend, driving her to sway to her feet again and limp toward the human, who came running.

"Featherbeak... Speak to me. Are you okay? What happened?!" The Nidorina asked, when the human slid to her side, chattering in human speak; she ignored it and focused on the Noctowl. "Takedown - the lasting legacy of a trainer I knew. You were magnificent in that fight, my dear. You finished what I couldn't." The owl said, said pausing to cough raggedly. "What in the _WIDE_ world made you think you could even START fighting the thing in the first place?!" Nidorina demanded.

"...I couldn't stand for seeing that over-glorified pebble hurt you like it was. It wasn't even a fair fight either - the human got in the way." He said weakly, and this attempt at humor brought a shaky smile to the Nidorina, which only lasted as long as it took to study him a bit more closely: one eye had now swollen shut, and one wing was bent at an unnatural angle. "Ohh, what a fight…. What a night." He repeated weakly. "What a flight." Nidorina supplied fondly, a tear in her eye - but, to her surprise, Featherbeak righted himself awkwardly with the human's help.

"Ohhh, I _ache_! That pain hurts... Ah! Like you wouldn't believe…!" The old owl groaned, his tone sounding increasingly desperate as his wing dropped to the floor, unsupported. "Featherbeak… Please tell me you'll be all right!" Nidorina begged. To her surprise, Featherbeak managed a slight but pain-filled chuckle. "I… I think I'll heal for the time-being, but that is precisely part of the problem." Featherbeak said, and Nidorina's response of relief hung in her throat. He could see the utter grief evident in her eyes as he cleared his throat to speak. He began, shakily.

"It's been at the back of my mind for quite a while now, and the strain of flying so far up to meet you up on the mountainside the other night only reinforced my certainty. It was the winter season I was worried about at first, but, with an injury like this one, it's finally time to come to terms the reality that my time in this world will finally be up soon." He said, trying to keep the pain out of his voice for her sake. The Nidorina tried to speak, but no words would come; it didn't seem possible that Featherbeak's end was finally upon them both.

"How can you be so sure you'll be leaving me already? You look fine!" Nidorina lied, willfully ignoring the fact that Featherbeak had always looked rough for a Noctowl even when they were both younger; now, feathers bedraggled and hardly able to support himself on his feet, he looked positively wretched. "Using that take-down on that Onix took a lot more out of me than it used to when I was younger. A _lot_ more. And, it aggravated quite a number of my old and very painful battle injuries; _A_ _rgh!_ My wing… It's broken now, and badly too." Featherbeak responded.

The elderly owl's voice cracked or strained more than once as the pain washed over him; each telling sign that he was in pain served only to make the Nidorina increasingly more frantic. "...Oh… I've done it this time; I don't know that I'll even be able to survive in my condition long enough to recover, let alone live through another winter." Featherbeak responded, "–I thought about migrating farther south before this happened, but…." He trailed off, looking at his useless wing.

Tears fell from the Nidorina's face, and she sniffled deeply, beginning to sob. "Do not mourn for me, my dear – you always knew this day would eventually come. That's life on the mountain." The owl said, sighing shakily. "I didn't want to say anything because I didn't want you to worry for me. I didn't want to influence your decision to leave with this human either; your travels would have taken you far from here – far from me – and our goodbye would undoubtedly have been final. I knew you wouldn't knowingly stand for that." He responded.

The Nidorina blinked; the realization that Featherbeak's words on the mountain might have been the last she'd ever heard from him, and the bravery in which he was prepared to meet his fate alone on the mountain for her sake, pierced her to the very core. "You can come with me! You _must_ come with me!" She begged, unintentionally staggering him in the process and recoiling as he wheezed sharply under a fresh wave of agony.

"The human can take care of you – or, or forget the human! I'll stay behind; I don't care if I have to _**walk**_ you to someplace warmer on my back – I'll _learn_ how to hunt for you if that's what it takes; whatever I have to do! You took care of me when I was a pup for Arceus' sake, you've been my only friend until now, and… And I won't abandon you like you're suggesting!" The blue whined, utterly devastated.

Featherbeak smiled faintly again with his one remaining good eye, nuzzling her massive foreleg gently with his faded, cracked beak. "Under different circumstances I might have lived a while longer, but..." Featherbeak trailed off. "...Whether I get to go anywhere with you or the human is not _my_ decision to make." He reminded, and the two turned to stare at the human.

Though Alex could not make out any of their discussion, it was immediately and readily apparent that these two Pokemon evidently somehow knew each other – and while the human might not have been able to understand what they were saying, it was plainly obvious that they were close – friends, or allies perhaps. With something akin to a growing sense of embarrassment for intruding on what was probably a private moment between the two, Alex turned away, shifting feet nervously and looking over toward where the Onix had burrowed away.

In spite of her preoccupation with her avian friend, the human could not help but fret over the blue; she was covered in bruises, cuts, scratches, and other injuries from the battle. After a few moments more of attempting to gauge how badly she was hurt from afar in the darkness, Alex soon realized the two had ceased conversing, and were both watching _him_ now.

Showing a remarkable degree of humiliation or remorse, the Nidorina approached… And even in the darkness, Alex made out her poor imitation of attempting a grasping motion with her stubby fore-claws. Although it took a moment, Alex realized she could only be gesturing for a potion; she was asking for him to save the Noctowl.

Alex paused, caught in a quandary – it was by his mother's firm insistence that he bothered to pack any potions at all; it didn't take long for the human to dig out the one remaining potion in his fast-emptying backpack and hold it up – however, a new problem presented itself a moment later: there were two wounded Pokémon, and only one potion.

The decision was made when Nidorina retreated away from Alex and nodded at Featherbeak, who dipped his head low; though his preference would have been to heal the Nidorina since she could still fight, Alex realized he could not ignore the extent of the Noctowl's admittedly far more severe injuries, and applied it as gently as he could over the ancient creature's broken wing, eye, and myriad of other wounds.

Unfortunately, the effect was not as pronounced as it had been when he'd used the first on the Nidorina; potions did nothing to treat the effects of old age and hard living or truly severe injuries, but, within a short period of time, the Noctowl was able to at least move his injured wing somewhat, albeit incredibly stiffly – and to Alex's relief, the swelling of his terrible black eye receded a fair amount to reveal an undamaged eye.

Unfortunately, the potion would be no substitute for an extended stay in the ICU of a Pokemon center, and even then, this was probably as close to "normal" as the poor owl would ever get from now on, Alex realized sadly. The human froze in alarm, belatedly realizing that the old bird might try to fly away as it had first appeared – however, his dread was relaxed momentarily as the Noctowl instead hopped a few steps closer.

"Thanks for your help back there, friend. You were a lifesaver" Alex remarked aloud, hesitantly extending his hand toward it, hoping it would not bite him – as his fingers touched soft but thinning feathers, the Noctowl gave a weak hoot of contentment, turning his head so Alex could run a finger gently over its crown – _it seems friendly too,_ Alex thought as the Nidorina approached hesitantly, then sat beside the Noctowl. A terrible desire to capture and take the Noctowl to see a veterinarian surfaced within Alex – however, remembering the Nidorina's very unhappy reaction to his attempting to capture her, Alex reluctantly stayed his hand.

 _She just chased off a rampaging Onix because it hurt this Noctowl. She'll flatten me for sure if I try to do anything that looks like it might hurt him._ Alex thought, helplessly. "...We should get moving before that Onix comes back. Let's–" Alex started to say, until he realized the Nidorina remained anchored to her spot beside the Noctowl. "–Go…?" He even pantomimed leaving for emphasis - again, she sat rooted to her spot, not moving. The Noctowl hopped weakly a step forward, but the sharp jostle of his wing made him screech out and freeze on the spot; Alex's teeth clenched in sympathy, and he grasped his hair in his hands as he fruitlessly tried to think of what to do.

The solution came a short while later, when the Nidorina approached and lay flat on her belly. The Noctowl stiffly made his way up her tail until he perched on her shoulder, resembling a parrot on a captain's shoulder: _They're a package item – she won't go anywhere without him,_ Alex realized, and a kindling of hope sparked within him; only when the owl had made itself as comfortable as it could on the Nidorina's back did she turn her attention expectantly toward Alex again.

Alex looked around the darkness; hiking along the mountain in the dark did not at all seem like a good idea, but, the shifting of a rock startled the three all at once. A solitary stone echoed loudly as it tumbled into and fell down the massive Onix hole behind them – s they stuck very closely to Alex after that, he realized they too didn't want to be caught sleeping anywhere _near_ this spot if the Onix came back sometime in the night; quickly, the human led the two away, feeling increasingly odd as he did so.

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Sweat beaded on Alex's face, and his bleary eyes cracked open weakly – dim pre-dawn light greeted his hazy vision, and it took several moments for the world to stop spinning. Alex's pillow shifted slightly, so she could better lick his feverish forehead – his eyelids fluttered open and he raised a weak arm to put his hand tenderly on the Nidorina's muzzle. In the excitement of the fight earlier in the night, Alex had been able to temporarily withstand the full-body needling of the venomous spines he'd gotten while riding Nidorina's back in the wild flight from the Onix, and the second painful sticking in his hands and arms as he pulled her free of the rock serpent's coils.

However, the adrenaline of the fight had worn off, and with it, the human's ability to withstand the deleterious effects of the relatively huge dose of poison; after struggling along in the darkness for as long as he could, he passed out sometime in the night. Now, with morning upon them, Nidorina doting upon him, oblivious to the fact that she was probably making the problem worse by attempting to clean his wounds; Alex struggled to sit up, and vomited.

Wiping his mouth off on the back of a hand, he felt faint again; rummaging around in his pack for a bottle of water, he downed it as quickly as he could - it upset his already rampaging stomach, but Alex willed himself not to concentrate on the nausea. _I…. feel terrible, but… I've been getting exposed to small doses of her venom since that first afternoon when we met – I must be developing a_ _tolerance_ _. I'd be dead altogether right now if_ _that weren't the case_ _._ Alex realized, as the Noctowl let out a concerned hoot from his perch upon her shoulder.

A steady white noise in Alex's ears eventually coalesced into the trickle of water as his mind finally focused: _We fell_ _quite a ways down the mountain_ _with that Onix_ _; we must have made it as far back down as the stream before I passed out,_ Alex thought, greatly encouraged. Crawling over to the stream, Alex splashed some blessedly cool water over his hot face, before dipping his head to the water and drinking deeply – evidently satisfied that he'd live, the Nidorina approached, joining him at the water's edge to drink their fill too. Determined to at least try and flush the venom from his system, Alex drank until he thought he might puke; only then did he lay for a few moments in the cool grass, watching the early morning sky spin.

"...I think we're in trouble, guys." Alex finally said, when the world stopped spinning and his condition improved somewhat. Returning to his bag, he dug around inside; his meager stores would not support himself and now _two_ Pokemon for long at all – the pair only watched him silently, as he propped himself up against a tree. The Nidorina approached, and Alex extracted and offered her what few apples he had remaining in his bag – there were just three of them. And for the Noctowl, evidently still too injured to hunt for itself, the injured creature eagerly accepted a stick of jerky that Alex had intended to save for himself, but offered up to the old bird without reservation.

"To hell with this stupid mountain. _Nothing_ is worth this much trouble – not even a dump truck load of Absol." Alex decided aloud, absently stroking the Noctowl and Nidorina; in all his time on the mountain, he had not even caught hint of a sign that one was near – not when the Spearow, the Ekans, the Graveler, or the Onix had been there, and certainly not now when he needed it most. There was only the Nidorina, and now the Noctowl; Alex began to truly fret over the decision he knew wouldn't be too much longer in coming.

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As Alex followed the trail down to when the old stone bench he'd slept on days before sat, his mind drifted back to the events of the previous days, and the near-death experiences he'd had along the way. After another quick glance around, he confirmed his course – this was roughly the same spot he'd tried to reach in the hope that the Spearow on his way up... Which meant that he was on course to return home; Alex looked up at the sun – they had made good time coming back downhill from the mountain, and that left him with a surplus of sunlight.

 _But..._ Alex hesitated, glancing down at the Nidorina and the Noctowl at his side: wild Pokémon couldn't follow him around forever, and as attached as he'd begun to grow to the Nidorina, he still had his misgivings about how readily she might submit to being captured. Shifting feet, Alex's indecision grew. _Maybe I don't have to leave just yet – would she mind if I decided to stick around a little longer?_ He wondered; a thought occurred to him: the spot where he'd first met the Nidorina was not much farther down the path. As he very hesitantly resumed his pace, this time the Nidorina took up leading the way, and, without Alex needing to say anything, she turned at the point on the trail where he'd taken that fateful tumble.

Disappearing off the trail entirely, she picked her way through the foliage to her den; carefully brushing the thorn bush away, he stepped at last into the dim clearing that had been stamped in the forest floor by the Nidorina's feet over time. "Nidooo." The Nidorina vocalized softly, already standing before her old burrow; the Noctowl roused with a shake of its head, and stiffly dismounted from her shoulder when she carefully lowered herself close enough to the ground; he blinked sleepily and squinted against the light. "...I hope you two have room for one more around here, at least for tonight." Alex said aloud, though he knew the Nidorina probably would not understand words yet; now with the mountain behind him, home seemed so much closer now… Too much closer.

The Nidorina said nothing, joining the Noctowl in staring at Alex – absently, he dug around in his pack, and extracted a can of stew; the Noctowl perked up when the human took out a spoon and offered him a chunk of meat near it, and approached eagerly. As far as supplies went, Alex's stores were quickly reaching critical status – even with all the things he'd brought and relying on the Nidorina's memory of the area to forage for edibles; the Noctowl finished every chunk of meat in the can, then settled back to sleep the rest of the evening away beside him. Evidently trusting that he was relatively safe there, the Nidorina rose and stalked off, likely to forage for food on her own – as Alex stirred the remaining vegetables in the can and raised the spoon to his mouth, he continued pondering his predicament.

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Although she'd gone hungry in hard times before and had learned to accept hunger as a part of life, the Nidorina used the rumble in her stomach as an excuse to temporarily flee the burrow and continue pondering her predicament. The blue's thoughts shifted to what life on the mountain would be like if she decided to stay, now that the human had undoubtedly gotten his fill of the upper slopes. _I'll have Featherbeak to look out for now._ She realized, and that cold reality confronted her so totally that she slowed to a stop, and just sat: never mind the winter, which before now had seemed so far away… Just day to day life was going to be a terrible ordeal.

 _I promised Featherbeak I would help feed him… That means I will have to learn how to hunt._ The Nidorina's vision grew watery, and she set her teeth to grinding. _After seeing how horrible it felt to be in the position of the victim, I swore I'd never let myself be made to bully anything on behalf of another for any reason, the day that human sent his Beedrill to attack me._ The Nidorina thought. _Now, I won't just attacking other creatures, I'll be_ _killing_ _them. Even if I don't finish them off myself, they'll still be just as dead as if I had, once I drag them back to Featherbeak_ _to finish off himself_ _._ The Nidorina realized, as a tear slid down her cheek.

The blue had cried for weeks after accidentally poisoned her first creature to death; that incident had sparked a solemn vow never to use her spines on anything not fully deserving of her wrath, and led to the lifestyle that drove her to consume fruits and plants. It was a diet she maintained religiously even after Featherbeak observed once that her large teeth were obvious signs that her species were predators by nature; it was on that logic had in good intentions tried to bring her meat once – the dead Pidgey _still_ gave the Nidorina nightmares from time to time, and she'd unconsciously avoided the old bird for days after that incident.

 _Stay on the mountain, and kill for Featherbeak… Or go with the human, and risk being forced to fight_ _others, against my will_ _? To_ _possibly_ _maim or poison other young and defenseless pups?_ Though the Nidorina wailed at times, pleaded, pondered, gnashed her teeth, and even went so far as to physically cry out to Arceus for guidance, no way out of the terrible quandary presented itself to the ailing blue as the day grew longer.

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The Noctowl blinked at the brightness of the sun and clenched his eyes shut, cracking one only a bit as the sudden presence of the Nidorina beside him woke the old bird. "Goodness… How early is it?" He asked, as the Nidorina chuckled in fond amusement quietly in spite of her low spirits – a lone beam of late evening sunlight light pierced the forest canopy and shone directly on his face, giving the impression of being midday; she adjusted a large ear slightly to obscure the beam of light without rising, and the Noctowl's eyes opened wider.

"Ahh, much better. Much later, too. Thank you." He remarked, twisting his head around to regard the human stretching out his sleeping bag to lay on at the base of a tree nearby. "It hasn't changed much. The burrow, I mean." Nidorina remarked aimlessly, her tone neutral. "...But it _has_ changed." Featherbeak observed, trying to keep the pain of his wing from bleeding into his tone; the blue said nothing, growing somber.

"I suppose he'll be stopping here for the night – and he'll be gone in the morning." She said, turning away from the burrow; Featherbeak grew quiet – he had learned long ago to recognize when she wanted to discuss something very important, and she cleared her throat, searching for a place to start. "It came to me... While I was trying to chase down a Rattata." She began, shakily, and at this, Featherbeak grew extremely somber – he knew full well her stance against attacking innocent creatures; nevertheless, the declaration that she had been out attempting to hunt came as a slap that Featherbeak struggled with.

"Your watching out for me as a pup is perhaps the only reason I ever survived this far; it's what led you to get hurt so badly trying to save me from that Onix… And I've been a _terrible_ Pokémon by cheapening your concern for me by putting the label of 'friend' on you when you're the closest thing I've ever had to a father." Featherbeak accepted the impassioned statement stoically, and lifted his only remaining good wing to wipe a tear from her cerulean cheek. "I can't believe you were going to risk me leaving you behind without saying anything. I get sick just thinking about it." The Nidorina continued, crushed.

"Well… I knew what a burden I'd be on you in my old age; I didn't want you to have to deal with the terrible pain of convincing yourself to harm anything on my behalf." The Noctowl replied, gently. "As a Noctowl, I always knew I'd be bound to die alone and away from my young sooner or later. It's not a pretty thought, but I was ready to come to terms with that fate; after all, that's life, for creatures who are territorial loners by nature – and you cannot change what's in your nature any more than you can stop needing to breathe." Featherbeak replied.

" Well, nature is stupid! It shouldn't rule your life like that!" Nidorina snorted, contemptuously, and Featherbeak scoffed hard, thoroughly amused in spite of the pain of his wing. "Well, it _does_ , silly pup! That's the _whole point_. This isn't the first time I've ever have a problem with my nature, and it certainly won't be the last." The old owl replied, amused. "It's not?" Nidorina demanded pointedly.

"No." Featherbeak replied, gently, "...For example: The only reason I didn't eat you as a pup was because I knew your kind are poisonous. Even if I pecked off all your spines, I didn't think your venom glands inside your body would agree with my stomach. You looked like prey to me, and I was a predator. It's the natural order of things, even if the natural order doesn't always work out as intended." Featherbeak replied; Nidorina huffed, completely unperturbed by the owl's admission – it was ancient history, and he had still successfully helped her survive into adulthood no matter what his initial impulses were.

" Believe it or not, I am still unbothered by the fact that my instincts might lead me to die here alone. Your heart is in the right place, and I'm touched, but taking care of me will be your undoing. Just look at you, and how much strain you're under now; why, you're more miserable than I've ever seen you in all the years of your life. Was I wrong when I guessed how hard this would be on you?" Featherbeak observed; the Nidorina reeled at this question, caught off guard. "No…" She admitted hesitantly, "...But, go or stay, I can't just leave you – I cant! I _won't_. MY nature tells me it's wrong to abandon you no matter _where_ I go, and if you can't see fit to change your nature, then I won't either." She declared, stubbornly.

"Then what will your decision be?" Featherbeak asked. "Well… We have all the rest of tonight to discuss it. I wanted to talk with–" The Nidorina paused, when a humming, rumbling, buzzing sound greeted her ears; it sounded quite unlike anything she'd ever heard, and she'd heard plenty of Beedrill swarms in her time. Even the human with his comparatively poor hearing eventually picked up on the sound, and sat up in excitement unlike any she had seen in all his time with them. The human sprung to his feet, scrambling up to the path, shouting human language all the while. Perplexed, but understanding that something important was happening, Nidorina quickly excused herself from Featherbeak's company and set off after the human, oblivious to the look of solemnity beginning to crease the old bird's features.

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"Hello? Is somebody around?" A strong, clear, bell-like voice called out over the sounds of a gasoline slowing to an idle putter; as he burst out of the foliage and onto the trail, Alex turned and caught sight of the speaker, just a few yards down the trail and seated behind the wheel of a UTV. "Huh? Officer Jenny?" Alex asked in shock, recognizing the unmistakable look of one of the Jenny sisters in the newcomer's face, albeit more tanned, her hair drawn in a rugged ponytail, and wearing a hat and uniform unlike any Alex had ever seen on any of the city-patrolling Jennies.

"Hey there young man, don't you know this side of Mount Moon is dangerous?" Jenny asked, nudging the UTV along just enough to pull up beside Alex. "Boy, are _you_ telling _me_ – I've had about as much of this stupid mountain as I can take!" Alex said, exasperated. "I've been chased or attacked by bunches of wild Pokémon more times than I can count; you're the first person I've seen out here since I got here!" Alex said, wiping the sweat from his brow as he spoke. "That's because like I said: that's because the Northernmost slopes of Mt. Moon are dangerous – far more dangerous than the tourist-frequented southern face, and for that reason the Northern slopes are supposed to be off-limits to trainers below G-4 level proficiency in the Indigo league – that is, trainers who have the Rainbow Badge." Jenny explained.

Alex's hands collided with his face – he rubbed it vigorously, trying to hide his embarrassment with himself. "...That explains why it's mostly deserted up here; I bought a map of the area from some guy back in town that wasn't very good, and I guess I must have gotten lost or mixed up while reading it, because when I started, I _thought_ I was on the south side of the mountain, the one that's normally open to all visitors. I'm sorry for wandering out here, but you won't catch me sticking around – it really has been one heck of a week, Officer." Alex responded, exhausted; Jenny merely shook her head in amusement, making a face.

"Phew! It certainly smells like you've been out here for a while. But, actually, it's _Ranger_ Jenny – my sisters are officers, but, my being a Game Warden out here on Mt. Moon makes me a Park Ra–" However, she froze in mid-sentence suddenly and tensed, alert. "Hey… Is that your Pokemon?" She asked, pointing behind Alex to the Nidorina, who had finally reached the trail, catching up to Alex. The blue paused for a moment, hesitantly studying Jenny; she was the first other human the Nidorina had seen since Alex stumbled upon her burrow, and that elicited the same mix of nervousness and territorial dislike as his first meeting had.

Worse yet still, even from where the Nidorina stood it was possible for the sharp-eyed blue to see pokéballs secured to the stranger's hip and identify her as a trainer – a potential enemy. It was only the easy manner in which Alex approached the wholly unfamiliar human that momentarily prevented the Nidorina from impulsively and instinctively wanting to chase the new human off; however, the longer the new human lingered, the less at-ease the male human seemed to become, and that in turn made the Nidorina increasingly nervous.

Alex hesitated for a moment, fidgeting slightly. "Well…" He paused, nervously, "...Yes, and no… You see, she's been following me around like that, but, I never actually succeeded in catching her when we first met." He explained, digging in his pocket and producing one of the unused pokéballs he'd packed for the trip. "I bumped into her while exploring out here earlier this week," Alex said, absently scratching his nose as he spoke, "And she escaped when I tried to capture her – although she didn't wind up attacking me, she's been following me ever since. I have no idea where the Noctowl came from, but they seem to be close with one another – the Noctowl hasn't been threatening, and in fact it looks like it's in pretty bad shape. I was considering taking it into town to see if somebody could help it. They're both really friendly, I promise!" Alex finished.

The Jenny frowned, looking at the Nidorina – the two locked eyes, and the Nidorina snorted once contemptuously, but made no move forward; she did not at all seem 'friendly' to Jenny, and she frowned. "...I'm sorry, but I can't let wild, untamed Pokemon follow you back to town, young ma—" She stopped mid-sentence, blinking as if she remembered something. "Wait a minute, what did you say your name was?" She asked, taking Alex aback. "Erm… Alex. Alex Serrano; I'm here visiting over summer vacation from school. I live in Viridian city." Alex said. "Why do you ask?" He asked. The Jenny breathed a sigh of relief, but put shook her head sternly and placed a hand on her hip.

"We received a forwarded missing persons report from the Viridian City Police Department a day or two ago about a boy that meets your description, who's been overdue from an excursion out here. Your mother's been worried sick about you, young man. You're probably going to be in a heap of trouble when you get home." She said, sternly. Dread settled into Alex as she said this – indeed, among all the chaos, he'd lost track of time; by his estimate, he should have been back, even just to check in, a day and a half ago.

"Oh, great… Mom is gonna kill me..." He mumbled, putting a hand on his neck. "Hmm…" Jenny frowned, evidently distracted by a thought. "...Say, you wouldn't happen to know anybody by the name of _Cassandra_ Serrano, would you?" Jenny asked. "Uhh, yeah actually; that's my mom – she's probably the one who sent you out here to look for me." He said, somewhat sheepishly. "Hey! I know her!" Jenny said, snapping a finger. "Or I should say, my older sister Jenny, knew her. My sister used to patrol out here until a few years ago when she was transferred; they were good friends." Ranger Jenny remarked, but the amusement fell from her face as Nidorina approached cautiously hiding behind Alex.

"My, my, my, she's pretty big – and pretty dangerous I'll bet too. If you can't control her, then I'm afraid she'll have to be returned to the wild. I know it stinks, but rules are rules." Jenny said unhappily, shifting her hand warily so that they rested on the pokéballs at her hip. Alex winced tremendously at the statement, rubbing the back of his neck again helplessly; it was the exact thing he'd been dreading she'd say, and it began to tear at his heart.

How in the world could Alex even begin to explain to the wild Nidorina the rules humans lived by? He was also now acutely aware that while the blue may have followed him out of some sense of curiosity, he had no real control over her yet – and, without the experience gained by earning any badges either, Alex suddenly doubted he had the capacity to effectively tame a wild Nidorina of her size and age, even with her relatively docile nature.

"...I don't wanna have to send my Pokemon after that Nidorina since she seems to like you, so I'll tell you what: I'll give you a few minutes to try and get her to go back to wherever she came from on her own peacefully, if you think you can handle that. When you're done, get your things; I'll give you a ride back to the ranger station so we can at least radio in and tell your mom you're all right." Ranger Jenny said, casting one last concerned look at the Nidorina.

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Alex's stomach worked itself into knots as he walked back to collect his things; he could see that the Nidorina also sensed that something was up… She stared at him intently as ever – even the Noctowl was still awake, studying him from its perch on her shoulder. By the time he returned to the den, he was already sick from fretting. "...I'm sorry girl," Alex began, shakily, after procrastinating for several moments out of indecision, "...But, Jenny said you can't go wandering around on your own if you go with me. If we can't prove to her you're tame, you're gonna have to stay here. Do you understand?" Alex asked; it felt terrible to speak past the lump forming in his throat.

The human hardly cared about how silly it was to take the time to explain the situation with words he knew the blue would never understand, if it meant getting to stall even just a little longer; in spite of the ups and downs of the past several days, he could not suppress a burst of anger at Jenny for forcing them to have to part prematurely, and a feeling genuine concern and fondness for the Nidorina – he knew she could take care of herself probably better than he ever could, but the thought of her being alone on the mountain made him feel terrible. The blue said nothing; the Noctowl cocked his head slightly, but did not leave her shoulder either. Exasperated, Alex ran a hand through his unkempt hair, pacing back and forth in helplessness.

"Hmmm… It looks to me like the time has come to make a choice." Featherbeak remarked; privately, Nidorina had already more or less guessed the source of the human's odd behavior, and it instilled dread and more indecision within the Nidorina. "You knew it would eventually come to this." The old Noctowl said quietly, as the human hesitantly began to collect his peculiar belongings. "Yes, but I don't like it just the same. I don't want to be a slave." The Nidorina responded, distraught.

"That is understandable – but, you won't live your life trapped within a ball; the humans can release or return you at will, and some will even let you roam outside freely if you can behave yourself in the presence of other humans. Living with them is not always such a bad thing once you get used to it, and some of them can be quite friendly." Featherbeak explained patiently, even though the Nidorina knew his wing must have ailed him greatly.

"And how would you know?" The Nidorina asked pointedly, finally voicing the question that had been at the back of her mind in all the time she'd known the battered avian. He chuckled ironically for a moment, but paused to preen a feather in an agitated manner Nidorina had only seen a few times – he was fidgeting.

"I always wondered when you'd get impatient enough to finally ask me that question. Truth be told, I know from experience; life with humans can be a mixed blessing, and my first owner was kind – not unlike this one, actually, except I believe she was female. She returned me to the wild many seasons ago, and I have not seen her since. More trainers came in time, capturing me again, and they were not so kind – it was these humans that I ruined me and threw me away when they were done." Featherbeak said, puffing his feathers up momentarily, and then flattening them again.

"If my experience with my first human is not enough for you, then look to your own. I'll admit this human can be a rock-head sometimes, but, look to his treatment of you and I. Has he been at all unkind to you?" Featherbeak asked; Nidorina gnashed her teeth, knowing all along the owl would eventually bring that up. "Curse that other human; we could have discussed this a lot more had she not intruded and ruined everything!" Nidorina snarled angrily; Featherbeak said nothing, allowing several moments to pass in silence as Nidorina hung, undecided.

"The time to decide is upon us – let your instincts guide our way, and I will follow if I can." Featherbeak said; a frustrated tear rolled out of the Nidorina's eye. "...I'm scared..." She admitted, at last. "...Maybe not necessarily of _him_ , but of the future – for myself, and for you, and what it will be like as his playthings. I had hoped this human would be different, that we could still remain free, but he is not. We'll still be slaves, one way or another." The blue said, bitterly.

"It is okay to mourn the... Passing... of your freedom; offering up your entire way of life to a complete stranger is not an easy thing to do, and I would be lying to you if I told you I didn't also have some misgivings about him too. But I doubt we will be slaves as you think – and, if you enter into this partnership with hatred and resentment, then it will be doomed from the start, and you will both fail. Hatred of each other is the quickest way to turn a kind trainer into a mean and cruel one." Featherbeak said; Nidorina considered the words he'd spoken for several long moments in silence, still torn terribly on what to do.

In a way, the Nidorina felt was as if she were a young pup again: utterly lost, without direction in a wide and unknown world, with no one to guide her. She glanced up at the human as he approached with his things on his back... And wrapped his arms around the blue's neck, moisture streaming from his cheeks; he squeezed tightly, ignoring the prickling of her quills in his skin – for a moment, the memory of the human attempting to dash to her rescue, rock in paw, completely heedless of the wild Onix as he attacked it, flashed through the Nidorina's mind.

The human mumbled a few grief-strangled words in his funny human-speak, shook his paw, dispirited, at them, then turned from them, picking his way back up to the trail. Featherbeak made a noise that was so quiet it was almost silent, and then spoke. "...Ah, yes…. I remember now: That was the same gesture my human made the day she released me back into the wild. It appears the decision has been made for you – I believe he has just said goodbye." Featherbeak remarked, softly; the Nidorina groaned, a low, long groaning whimper of defeat. "Human? Human, wait… Human!"


	6. Chapter 6

"You're looking a little pale and sweaty; here, drink this. Hiking out there at this time of year is extremely dangerous without a good water supply." Ranger Jenny said, handing Alex a large plastic jug of water. Compared to the taste of the cold, crisp water from the stream, the jug water tasted plasticy and chemical to Alex; even so, he took a deep drink just the same, grateful for the first drink of water he'd had since earlier that day.

"Well, you can sleep here at the station tonight if you need to tonight – phew! – and maybe take a shower too, while you're at it." Ranger Jenny said, covering her nose again. Embarrassed, Alex thanked her for the jug of water again and withdrew to the far side of the room so as not to gas her to death with his body odor… And, as he did so, he realized his hand had unconsciously levitated toward the _inhabited_ pokéballs now sitting in his pocket.

An extremely wide grin stretched Alex's features, as a trembling hand close around them both; until now, Alex couldn't help dwelling on his mistakes and misfortunes while remembering the week's events. Now however, his triumph made such dour experiences all seem utterly inconsequential – the notion that he now had two Pokémon of his very own now, nearly made him jump for joy.

In spite of himself and the fact that he'd never even dreamed of catching a Pokémon before excepting the Absol, Alex eagerly pulled them out and pressed their buttons; with a quiet whir, the pokéballs expanded. It took a moment for the red hemisphere of the ball to shift translucent, and then he was staring at a miniature form of the Nidorina, who was also gazing back up at him. Immediately his face lit up again at the reaffirmation that he wasn't dreaming; a moment later the Noctowl came into focus too, although he was dozing comfortably inside his pokéball.

The thought of not being able to let either one of them out again there in the station was murder; Alex had not felt this tormented since he was a young boy on the eve of his birthday, when the thrill of seeing his presents was tempered by the fact that he couldn't yet open them. Alex took another deep swig of the water, and again, his eyes were magnetically attracted back to the Nidorina – however, she peered up at him with a sharp look that made her already naturally fierce features look almost hateful.

The smile slowly left Alex's face – there could be only one reason for such a sudden chilling of her slowly warming demeanor. Quietly, he ran a finger along the top of the ball as if he would be gently pet the top of her head; the Nidorina turned away from the finger after a moment of hesitation. Alex's heart sank; they would evidently have much to do in the way of rebuilding trust after this, and a sense of despair filled Alex at the odd notion that things might never be the same between them again.

"I'm sorry." He said quietly to the ball after a moment as she turned away, but the Nidorina suddenly fixed him in her hard gaze again. "I know you probably can't hear or understand me, but for what it's worth, I'm glad to have you with me more than you could ever know." Alex said, hoping to catch perhaps a even a flicker of understanding in her eyes – nothing.

Silently, the blue creature seemed to exhale in a silent, but disgusted snort, and pointedly avert her scarlet eyes: _This conversation is_ _over_ _;_ Alex could practically imagine the response, and that stole much of the wind from his sails. With a resigned and guilty sigh, the human gently set the two pokéballs inside his pack and left it on top of the tablet by the cot he would spend the night on, and headed off to the shower room.

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" _I'm sorry._ _"_ The Nidorina hid her surprise well at the sudden mental intrusion of the hated ball's injected thoughts, and then a moment later she realized it was actually the human speaking, with the meddlesome ball translating his odd gibberish into thoughts and communication she could at last actually understand.

At first, the ball presented her with grief – not her own – of which there was plenty – but his. _It's easy to apologize when_ _you're_ _not the one inside of this stupid ball,_ _slaver_ _!_ Nidorina thought, waspishly; unfortunately when no response materialized, she realized the ball was either incapable of, or unwilling to relay that response in a way the human could understand it.

 _Hmph…_ _That_ _figures._ She thought, suppressing another annoyed snort, temporarily nurturing thoughts of leaving the ball not necessarily to escape, but perhaps simply to remind the human she still had a will of her own, and that she was still very much in control of her own faculties. However, to the Nidorina's chagrin, these thoughts faded after a moment as her naturally short-lived temper cooled; briefly, she wondered if the ball had done this, or if she had finally begun to accept her own fate.

" _I know you can't hear or understand me, but for what it's worth, I'm glad to have you with me more than you could ever know."_ His sense of regret, and of affection, both in equal and strong parts, colored these next statements. _I can hear you just fine,_ _you dope_ _._ Nidorina thought, tiredly; combined with the previous statement, the human's apologies continued to soothe her wounded pride – a little.

Memories of their time together on the mountainside pushed their way to the front of the Nidorina's mind, both angering and soothing her in turn as she recalled each of them. However, no matter how hard the blue tried to remind herself that the human was the enemy, and that he had celebrated her imprisonment wildly and to the amusement of the other human… The Nidorina's thoughts inevitably drifted back to the memory of the human, armed with only a rock, as he attacked the Onix for her sake, ignorant of the danger and plainly expressing grave concern with his eyes as he wrenched her free from its coils.

As the human stared down at her, so small and seemingly powerless inside the ball, he momentarily resembled the Onix; on that thought, the Nidorina turned away from the human – his words and concern were indeed soothing, but they were also robbing her of her only chance to mope a little. A moment later, the human was gone, and everything went black for a moment; briefly she wondered what had happened, until she caught a glimpse of the human wandering off.

 _Must you torment him so?_ A familiar presence intimated to her a moment later; somewhat surprised, the Nidorina glanced around. Evidently through some mystical working on the part of the ball, the proximity of Featherbeak's own spherical prison evidently allowed him to communicate with the Nidorina too. " _Featherbeak?"_ She asked cautiously, in surprise. " _I am here."_ He responded quietly. The blue fell silent, wondering how long the wily old bird had been observing their exchange – and perhaps for how long he had really been asleep at all.

" _I loathe this ball. I might not have ever ventured very far from home when I was on my own, but out on that mountain, I was free to go and come as I pleased for any reaso_ _n –_ _no matter how silly – at any time of the day or night. Now, I am stuck inside here, only allowed out when he allows me to."_ The Nidorina transmitted, sourly. " _It's first-time catch jitters; they'll go away in time."_ Featherbeak explained, patiently.

" _As for our ability to roam where we wish…_ _Y_ _ou never went any where_ _even though you could_ _anyway, remember? And_ _I_ _never_ _venture_ _d_ _very far either because of_ _how taxing flying was getting to be_ _. If you think about it, we have not lost much,_ _in comparison to what we stand to gain_ _._ Featherbeak countered, with something akin to amusement in his thoughts.

" _You forget, Featherbeak, that you lived a_ _fair_ _portion of your life in freedom. Although I continue to hope the human will care for you, my freedom to explore the world got cut a lot shorter, thanks to this human. How am I supposed to get old and smart like you if I can't ever leave his side?"_ The blue demanded. A reply was not immediately forthcoming, but when it did, Featherbeak's tone implied he had found much humor in that statement.

" _YOU_ _forget that the majority of the things I learned were_ _all_ _when I traveled the world_ _in the company of_ _human trainers. One of the first things you must learn is patience – otherwise you'll live your life in constant frustration._ Featherbeak said; the Nidorina gritted her teeth as the Noctowl's inconveniently astute logic again declawed her arguments.

" _However,_ " Featherbeak's next statements were delivered far more sober than before. " _From what I_ _have seen_ _, not all humans are trainers._ _Y_ _ou have only seen these two, but there are herds_ _more_ _of them, more than you could ever_ _possibly_ _imagine._ _There are m_ _ore than any creature you've ever seen; more than all the trees on the mountain._ _What's more is that s_ _ome of them are very skittish like Pidgey, and fearful around Pokémon._ _Others, like human hatchlings, are too young to understand how dangerous things like your spines are._ _S_ _o, we must stay here in these balls until we are in the den our human lives in, or we are out in the wilderness._ _It is only a temporary thing._ _"_ Featherbeak explained.

While she may not have been particularly courages, the Nidorina didn't often scare… And yet the sudden notion of so many humans seemed very daunting indeed. If _one_ was bad enough, and the presence of two had required her confinement to a pokéball, what would three mean? A dozen? Two dozen? " _Traveling with humans made you smart, but it certainly took its toll on your body. What if I end up like you, forced to battle endlessly for_ _the_ _amusement_ _of this human,_ _until I_ _too_ _am battered and decrepit?"_ The blue asked, nervously.

Featherbeak fell silent again, but this time when he finally spoke, there was no more amusement in his voice. " _We have already decided to take our chances with this human – there's no point_ _now_ _in fretting over what could be. Have more faith in him; time and again he has proved to be kind, if not particularly smart. Remaining optimistic is all we can do at this point."_ Featherbeak admitted. The Nidorina seemed to finally find a hole the old Noctowl's logic, but it was a hollow victory considering the subject matter, and did nothing to quell her uncertain temper.

" _...I find it curious that I, having suffered the most at the hands of humans, can forgive them for things you cannot._ Featherbeak finally said, sometime later. " _That's because survival in your old age_ _made you reliant on this human, and_ _force_ _s_ _you to defend_ _the_ _actions_ _of humans_ _, not because you're on some higher moral ground."_ The Nidorina answered moodily; a dark silence followed, and the longer it lasted, the more an embarrassed dread filled the blue – she had overstepped a boundary in making such a comment.

" _You forget: I was already resigned to my fate, whatever it may have been – hardship has always been the law of the land, and every wild Pokémon that has ever lived including us, has understood that fact._ _I_ _have not forgotten that I_ _am here partially because of_ _you_ _, my dear._ _"_ Featherbeak replied; as always, there was no anger or animosity in his tone… And yet still, the words stung the Nidorina far more than he ever could have had he physically laid into her with his razor sharp beak and talons.

" _You're fretting more now about the future here in relative safet_ _y_ _than you were when you confronted the Graveller on_ _this human's_ _behalf up on the mountainside. Or when you were running and fighting for your very life against that Onix just days ago. What is so different about him then than now?_ _What has really changed?_ _"_ Featherbeak asked pointedly; as he always had when she was a pup, the wily old bird had cornered her in the argument, leaving her unable to think of a response.

The stricken and uneasy silence between them seemed to grow even more icy to Nidorina the longer it passed; with no other replies forthcoming, she belatedly realized Featherbeak must have gone back to dozing, leaving her alone to mull his words just as surely as if he'd simply flown back to his tree at the conclusion of an argument between them as he sometimes had when she was a pup.

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"….Sorry about earlier; I forgot all about the water heater being broken." Ranger Jenny said somewhat sheepishly, after Alex emerged from the bathroom sometime later, clean and dressed. "Aheh… The water was bracing." Alex dismissed politely; although he'd nearly jumped through the ceiling when being splashed by the icy water, now he just felt good to be clean again.

"Considering how this week has been going though, I guess I'd rather take a little cold water over a raging Onix any day." Alex explained, rubbing his hands over his still damp hair to shake the water from it. "If it hadn't been for my new Nidorina and Noctowl battling and chasing that thing off, I'd be dead meat for sure." He said, eagerly taking a ration bar she offered, and sitting on a footlocker nearby. Jenny bit down on one herself as he spoke, but frowned at the statement and regarded him with concern.

"Onix? Wild Onix are _extremely_ uncommon in most human-accessible parts of Mt. Moon. Are you sure it was an Onix you saw?" She asked. Flashbacks came roaring back of the enormous creature only partially illuminated inside the black cave by an errant flash of Alex's flashlight; they were followed by the memory of wildly galloping along on Nidorina's back blindly through pitch darkness to escape it; Alex remembered clinging for dear life to its stone horn crest as it fell down the mountainside, and the terror of lying stunned and immobile before it after the fall.

"Hey, are you okay?" Jenny asked, a moment later, jarring him back to the present. "It was an Onix." Alex declared, with certainty. "I'm sure you know Onix are pretty physically distinct, and the one we fought almost wiped the three of us out. I only caught just a brief glimpse of it in the light, and a vague outline of it outside on the mountainside, but there's definitely no mistaking something like that for anything else. It definitely wasn't a pet store Goldeen." Alex said, a shiver creeping up his spine.

"I don't know where it came from or how it got to where it was, but it seemed to be living inside of a natural cavern near the peak of the mountain when we found it. It… It chased us, and nearly killed us; I swear, I've never been so terrified in my life." Alex said, getting exhausted again just thinking of the whole ordeal. Jenny frowned even harder, looking out the window of the ranger station, into the gathering dusk outside.

"Well, I personally find it kind of hard to believe, but, come to think about it, Nidorina aren't supposed to be native to this area either, and yet there you have one – congratulations again on that by the way. But if what you're saying is true, then we might have a very serious problem on our hands." Ranger Jenny responded, visibly lost in thought.

Alex blinked, bewildered. "If it's up there, and we're down here, then what's the problem?" Alex asked. "Ordinarily, there _wouldn't_ be too much of one for now," Jenny said. "Because, as I said, this side – the _Northern_ side – of Mt. Moon is far more dangerous than the southern side, where most people visit. The North Face is only inhabited by tough Pokémon, and is visited only rarely by equally Pokémon trainers – with the exception of you, tourists, mountain climbers, and most other Pokémon trainers all know to stay away from this side and stick to their designated areas on the Southern, Western, and Eastern sides." Jenny explained; Alex felt a rush of heat to his cheeks and the back of his neck.

"Inside the mountain," Jenny continued, "Is a different story completely. An Onix – one that apparently attacks humans on sight – already presents an extreme danger to _anyone_ anywhere inside the mountain, but, we also have several teams of scientists, researchers, and geologists in there that explore the natural caverns inside of Mt. Moon, and most of them don't even carry Pokémon to defend themselves with." Jenny explained. "Do you have any proof to back up your claims? It's nothing personal, but as a Ranger, and with the lives of so many others at risk, I have to make certain there's credible threat present before I send out an APB on something like this." Ranger Jenny asked.

Alex thought for a moment, helplessly; a camera was not a piece of equipment he'd thought to bring, and he highly doubted he would have even had the chance to use it during the wild escape from the Onix anyway if he had – thus, he had no photographic evidence. Alex mulled the frustrating problem for several moments, until the memory suddenly flashed. "The cave! You can go see the cave where it attacked us for yourself!" He declared.

"When the Onix chased us, it bored right through the mountain near the peak, collapsing that part of the slope face, and created a fair sized rock slide when we fell down the mountain. In fact, now that I think about it, when we chased it off, it burrowed another tunnel directly into the mountain again to escape; there should be at least one, maybe two Onix-sized tunnels out there now that weren't there before." Alex said, but by the time he finished, Ranger Jenny was already rising from her desk, her ration bar completely forgotten.

"I've gotten a few reports of unusual and irregular geological activity around here lately, but I figured it was nothing that far out of the ordinary." Jenny remarked as she approached a radio transmitter array on a table across the room. "That rock slide is the other reason I was going up the mountain myself to investigate today, besides looking for you." She said, preparing to switch it from passive monitoring to active transmission mode. "I'll take your word for for it about what you saw up there for now only because this is so very important – that Onix could be extremely dangerous." Jenny pausing to make a few minor calibrations and picking up the talk-back microphone.

A shiver passed through Alex as he imagined being trapped within the lightless depths of the Mountain again, only this time from the perspective of a terrified, defenseless researcher being being buried alive by a collapsed tunnel as the Onix burrowed past – or worse yet still, being chased by it like he had. Moments passed as Jenny spoke on the radio with what sounded like several people, perhaps other Rangers and researchers in and around the mountainside; Alex continued to eat slowly, listening to their responses, all very skeptical-sounding of the report she had to make.

After nearly 10 minutes of solid exchange, she switched the radio back to listening mode. "None of the other teams have reported seeing anything resembling Onix sign yet, but, like I said, they also detected the unusual amount of seismic activity in the area yesterday night when you claim you were attacked. Unfortunately with it getting so late in the day, I can't go surveying the tunnel sites until first light – and even then, it's not safe to go alone." Jenny said, reluctantly, clearing her throat.

"...You... Mentioned earlier that you and your Pokémon were able to fend off that Onix once already; I really hate to ask since you don't even sound like you have your first badge yet, but if you and your team stood up to it once already, then it sounds like you're already off to a solid start. I could really use your help checking things out up there – I only need to mark the entrances to the tunnels on a map to give to the task force sent to capture it, and then we can return." Jenny said.

"Well…" Alex mumbled, at a loss for words; it was the first time anyone had ever really needed him for anything in his life – his thoughts drifted back to his Pokémon. "...I'd love to help, but, my Nidorina and Noctowl were pretty banged up in the fight – I think my Noctowl has a broken wing." Alex responded; a look of horror crossed Jenny's face. "Does it?! My friend Nurse Joy and I used to be study buddies; she helped me get ready for the police academy and I helped her study for her nursing license, and I picked up more than a few pointers off her about Pokémon first aid." Ranger Jenny said, hurrying for a medical supply cabinet. "Let me see the poor creature!"

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When Nidorina first heard Featherbeak's agonized cries of distress, it brought her bursting forth from her pokéball and ready to attack both humans, until it was Featherbeak that settled her down. "No! Stop… I think they're trying to help me. I know this looks like it hurts, because it does, but it only hurts in the way that the spray does before it actually starts healing you. Let them do whatever they must; it's for the best." The Noctowl rasped tightly, seeing the Nidorina readying for a fight; only very reluctantly did she back off, though she did not take her eyes off either human – particularly the new one, who seemed to be keenly aware of her protectiveness toward Featherbeak.

When they finally turned loose of the old bird, Nidorina approached, her nose leading the way. "What did they do to you? Are you okay?" Nidorina demanded; Featherbeak seemed visibly more relaxed by a small amount than before. "Yes, I am actually. In fact I'm feeling better than I have since I was injured; my wing hurts a little less." Featherbeak replied, inspecting the splint that had been put on it appreciatively. "What is it?" Nidorina asked, sniffing the white bandaged wing cautiously.

" For once, I have no idea. But it won't let my wing move in any way, which is what makes it hurt worse, so it can't be all that bad. I suppose it will allow me to heal faster." Featherbeak replied; he smelled strongly like the mysterious spray they had used on him again, particularly where his wing injury had been the worst. Cautiously, the stranger offered a bottle of the spray to their human – except this one was a different color; Nidorina rumbled in dissatisfaction.

"It looks like you've given them ideas… They're wanting to use whatever that is on _me_." Nidorina grumbled, as the human approached. Although it stung just as badly as it had the first time on her freshest cuts, this marvelous and evidently more powerful spray worked wonders on her battered body, even going so far as to remove what lingering soreness the first spray had missed from the blow the Graveller had landed on her head.

As the Nidorina sat, her cuts still tingling but no longer hurting, she deposited herself rather roughly onto her rump, trying to ignore the amused look Featherbeak was shooting her way. _You know, you_ _creatures_ _are making it_ _incredibly_ _hard to hate you,_ the Nidorina thought to herself, frustrated with the fact that they continued to rob her of reasons to sulk a little – Featherbeak wordlessly accepted a gentle scratch on the head from the new human.

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"This poor Noctowl's seen some much better days. I wouldn't use him in battle anymore if I were you – not now with that splint on… Heck, maybe not ever." Jenny remarked, beginning to put the first aid supplies away. "I hadn't intended to. I didn't even order him to attack originally; I have no idea where he came from." Alex remarked, helping her clean up. "Getting him some help was my primary concern, and it looks like you've taken care of that. If you can pass along the message to my family first to let them know I'm okay and what's happening, I can do my best to lend a hand. She used to be a trainer herself; I think she'll understand my being needed here." Alex said.

Privately, he felt more than a little fear of the notion of seeing that Onix again – yet he was loathed to let Jenny risk visiting the summit, now that the Noctowl had been given treatment for his wing. "All right! I'll get right on that then." Ranger Jenny declared , brightening at his response. "If any of you are still hungry there's more food, but otherwise, I suggest getting as much rest as you can for tomorrow; if you need anything else, I'll be up getting my equipment ready. 'Night!" Jenny said.

Although the Nidorina hesitated at first, she did not turn her nose up for very long at the Poke-chow Alex placed before her – the Noctowl set upon his own serving almost immediately, and the eagerness with which he ate seemed to motivate the blue to finally sample the food. Just watching them eat filled Alex with almost childish amusement, though he yawned deeply a moment later – the idea of a bed, even a fold-out couch bed, was inviting, and his exhaustion was finally getting the better of him.

Once the pair were finished eating, Alex bit his lip. "I'm sorry guys – back inside. I'll let you out first thing in the morning though, I promise." That their dismissal was met with a considerable degree less animosity than before from the Nidorina, which eased Alex's ailing conscience somewhat; she was clearly going to require a lot of patience to work with. However, that thought was a concern for another day; setting the two pokéballs on the table beside his cot, Alex lay down, and was asleep almost immediately.

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"Okay! Up and at 'em! We have a lot of ground to cover today!" Jenny's voice greeted Alex much too soon; the covers, so warm and crisp, felt like they might have actually been sapping the energy out of him as he slept, for all the laziness he felt. Sitting up and yawning deeply, Alex rubbed his eyes; the creaking chirp of night insects could be heard chirping even over the hum of the A/C unit outside.

A pang of affection tugged at his heart as he turned to the table in which the Nidorina dozed silently in her ball; the Noctowl was already awake, and looked to be getting ready to finally doze off for the day. "I've got everything we'll need in the storeroom; you can replenish your food and water supply here if you need to, and leave whatever you don't need to save weight. We should only be gone until this evening." Ranger Jenny said. From there, the morning seemed to pass quickly, and barely a half an hour later, they stood ready to leave; locking the door, they boarded the UTV.

"You know, if you're anything like how your mom was, you'll probably make a good trainer with some practice. I guess being an outdoor person must run in the family." Jenny said, as she turned the engine. "It doesn't – or didn't, until now." Alex said, adjusting his pack on his shoulders. "I never had much interest in training before now, to be honest." He said, casting a glance at the lightening gray sky. "I'm still on the fence about it too. The "running for my life" part gets pretty old after a while, but the companionship certainly has its perks." He said, patting the two pokéballs at his side.

This drew a laugh from Jenny as they set off at full speed for the trail; by sunrise, the use of the vehicle had allowed them to cover the same distance it had taken Alex a day to hike – and by mid-morning, they had reached where Alex had found the stream. "From now on we'll have to proceed on foot; the trail gets too rough to risk using the UTV any further. If you'd like to let any of your Pokémon out, go ahead." Jenny said. Alex regarded the two pokéballs in his hand; the Noctowl was asleep and probably snoring soundly, but the Nidorina was not – and she stared with an impenetrable expression at him from inside.

"Our friend Jenny here needs our help. She says it's safe to come out now." He said to her gently, and pressed the release mechanism; she burst into existence there on the path beside the UTV. The Nidorina blinked in plain bewilderment at the familiarity of the surroundings; evidently she hadn't expected to return here – or if she did, at least not so quickly. She eyed the UTV, and then the trail; Alex grinned, realizing she must have been trying to fathom how they could possibly have traveled the distance from the cabin to the hillside in such short time – the sun was not even at its Zenith in the sky.

"Where in the world did you find her, if you don't mind my asking? I've never seen a Nidorina, or even any Nidoran roaming this mountain before." Jenny asked, a little bewildered by the Nidorina's size. "It's a long story." Alex said somewhat dryly, and amused. "We passed the spot on our way up here; in fact, remember where we met yesterday? Her den was off the trail from that spot. It's where I bumped into her." Alex said; the Nidorina regarded Jenny for a moment, and then turned her attentions back to Alex. With a low rumble of disapproval, she used her nose to knock the pokéball out of his hand.

"Okay, okay, okay, I know you don't like it. But don't worry, because you won't have to go back just yet." He said placatingly, picking it up and sticking it in his pocket. A moment later though, another burst of energy surprised them both, as a large, squat, powerfully built, glossy black beetle with a large horn materialized beside Jenny. "I'd like you both to meet Felix, my Heracross." She said proudly. The Heracross and Nidorina regarded each other with curiosity, and exchanged a brief dialogue at whose meaning Alex could only wonder about – however, to Alex's secret relief, Nidorina didn't seem to react with any overly territorial or hostile behavior.

A radio crackled briefly from a harness on her backpack's shoulder strap; Jenny apparently issued a check-in report with another ranger elsewhere on the mountainside, giving Alex time to look around. In spite of all the unpleasant memories wrapped up in the first ascent, Alex already felt a sense of nostalgia as he recalled that first night, waking up with Nidorina still beside him; if she was still upset at the pokéball incident, she seemed to let the resentment die for now, even going far enough to fish for a scratching behind the ear.

"Okay! Let's head out. The researchers still haven't seen anything on their end yet, but they're planning the evacuation of several teams from the interior caverns anyway just to be sure." Jenny said, checking her watch. Nearly 20 minutes of hiking later – and now that Alex was in much better shape than in the first time around – they reached another 'landmark' in the trail; Nidorina began sniffing around, noticeably fidgety.

"We were attacked by a wild Graveller further down the trail; she saved me then too. We should be more careful as we go along; the friggin' thing almost ran me over as it tumbled down the mountainside." Alex explained to Jenny, who grinned. "You two are something else. It's cute that she already seems to be growing onto you; normally, Pokémon around what I'd estimate to be her age and size would be much harder to work with, even for rookie trainers. You must have some of the same touch your mom did when she was younger." Jenny said.

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 _...Maybe Featherbeak was right… Maybe_ _it really_ _was_ _time for me to leave,_ The Nidorina thought, regarding with open wonder the gigantic giant bug watchfully taking in their surroundings – 'Heracross were not native to Mt. Moon, and she had never seen one before now. _T_ _his mountain is becoming more and more stifling every day,_ The blue thought in helpless irritation; she was beginning to feel the first true stirrings of impatience at having to venture back up the mountain on another wild lark of some kind, instead of getting her first true glance at humanity and the world at large as she had hoped.

One thing that had begun to bother her the farther they walked up the mountain was a question that had dogged her for as long as she could remember: _There are a number of things I've never seen in my life before, and this giant bug is one of them… I_ _can't be the_ _only_ _Nidorina in the world._ The blue thought, hesitantly. _What in the world does a male Nidorina even look like?_ She wondered.

It wasn't unreasonable to expect other Nidorina looked somewhat like her perhaps, but the only thing Featherbeak had said regarding males of her kind was that they were of a different color – the color of fresh scar tissue – with a large central horn on their heads, and were considerably quicker to anger than she. The blue tried to superimpose these odd traits on the image she'd seen of herself in a reflecting pool several winters back, and was left with a mental image of… _Well…_ _Maybe I'm not missing out on much by being alone, but… S_ _till,_ _I've got to see one_ _for myself anyway!_

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By mid-afternoon, the grou left the spot where the Graveller attacked far behind. "We'll stop here for just a minute while Felix scouts around. I haven't heard anything stirring anywhere, but even so, it's dangerous to wander through unprepared." Jenny said; the Heracross clicked its mouth-parts, unfolded its wings, and flew off. _Aerial recon… That's a really good idea._ Alex thought, glancing at the sleeping Noctowl back in its pokéball at his side, and filing away the clever tip for future reference.

Nidorina sat, and Alex joined her on the ground; memories of that first terrifying moment when the Graveller attacked still replayed vividly in Alex's head, and wrapping an arm as far around Nidorina's back as he could, he hugged the blue tightly. She relaxed when he began scratching her sides soothingly.

"You've saved my butt too many times for this all to be a coincidence – now that you've decided to come with me, I'll work on making myself a better trainer; I have got to. I owe you at least that much." Alex said to himself as much as the Nidorina quietly. The blue cocked her ears slightly, staring blankly; even so, the intelligent female seemed to understand he'd been attempting to convey something important to her – she lay flat on her belly, leaning against him until Felix returned a while later.

"Anything dangerous around, Felix?" Jenny asked, as it landed. The bug chattered slightly, but from its easy posture, Alex concluded that there wasn't. "We should keep moving; how much farther do you think it is?" She asked Alex, and he blinked. "Uhh… The rock slide at the peak of the mountain should still a ways farther up, but… We should reach the tunnel that Onix made here soon." Alex said, dusting himself off as he got to his feet.

The estimate wasn't far off – in a little over a half hour's time, large chunks of freshly disturbed rock began littering the trail. "If I had to guess, I'd say it's – there… There it is, over there!" Alex said, spotting the piles of boulders some distance away. Jenny removed a pair of binoculars from her belt, and studied the entrance carefully for a moment; the Heracross dropped into a somewhat tense posture, but made no move without an explicit command from Ranger Jenny.

"Well… The good news is that it's definitely an Onix burrow – which is to say it's more than enough proof to authorize a full scale evacuation of the tunnels and call for a removal team to come after it. The bad news is that, while I can't believe it, it really _is_ an Onyx burrow – it also looks like it's been used more than once, and recently too; very recently." She said, passing him the binoculars.

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"Hmmm… Down there… On the inside of the tunnel mouth: I think I see a couple of Zubat." Alex said, shifting focus away from the rock, and to the cave itself, studying the almost indistinct blue patches lying at the mouth a little closer. "Hmmm… You're right – they're _fainted_ Zubat." Jenny said, after Alex handed the binoculars back and studied them for a moment. "If I had to guess, they probably tried to enter or leave the tunnel some time in the night and got caught between the Onix and the rock walls as it moved through the tunnel, the poor dears." Jenny said sympathetically, twisting the focus ring on the optics slightly.

Alex felt a bead of sweat begin tracing its way down his face from his forehead. "Think we should go check it out up close?" He asked, hardly believing his own ears – he'd dreaded the idea of even thinking of seeing it again since last night, let alone challenging it again. Jenny was silent for a moment. "It's a tough call; I think I might be able to take it down if your Nidorina helps Felix double-team it, but, it's extremely risky because we won't have any backup if anything bad should happen." She said, putting the binoculars away.

"We damaged it yesterday." Alex said, hesitantly. "It tumbled all this way down the mountainside from near the Peak, got caught up in its own rock slide and beat silly, and then it took a particularly nasty fall from that rock bluff there; my Noctowl and Nidorina both hit it with everything they had, but it ran away before they could finish it. It should still be relatively weak; now might be our only chance to take it out." Alex reasoned, hesitantly.

"The ranger team that gets sent after it might not be able to force it back out into the open before it fully rests and recuperates; fighting it at full strength underground in its own tunnels would be suicide." Alex said. Jenny was silent for a moment, frowning darkly at the tunnel and tapping her lip. "You make a lot of good points, but, I still think it's too–" Jenny stopped in mid-sentence, as if she'd been slapped.

" _Cle-fair-y… Cle-fair-y… Clefairy! Clefairy!"_ The chant, quiet at first, made the entire group freeze except Nidorina – she looked around, and fixed on a spot right behind them. " _Cle-fairy, Clefair-y, Clefairy…_ " A light pink Pokémon, seemingly floating as if walking on the surface of the moon, skipped over a small rock face and stopped the moment it saw Alex and the others. It paused, not setting down the object it seemed to be carrying, and regarded them all for a moment with an odd expression.

Alex's eyes were drawn from the odd necklace it wore, to a large and relatively recent gash on its side that appeared to be healing slowly. The ugly wound was one of several others, some small, some relatively large, that marred what might have been a flawless and shimmering pink coat. A burst of grave and genuine concern for the creature filled Alex, but, before he could speak or even move, it bounced off in a different direction, no longer chanting its odd phrase.

"A Clefairy!? I don't believe it!" Jenny said, breathless. "In all my time here on this mountain, I've never seen one in person before – or my sister for that fact either!" Jenny said, in shock. "It's heading right for the Onix tunnel. Stop it!" Alex said, but the Clefairy increased its hops into wide, loping lunges and disappeared into the cave by the time Alex had scrambled to his feet. Behind him, Nidorina sat watching silently. "I don't believe it; we may be one of only a couple hundred other humans ever to have seen one of their kind outside of their natural habitat in the caverns of Mt. Moon before!" Ranger Jenny said excitedly, also getting to her feet.

"Clefairy are extremely rare – even researchers know next to nothing about them, and this is the only place in the entire world they're thought to exist. In fact, I think I could count the number of researchers on one hand that I've ever heard of that have caught a Clefairy, and still have fingers left over!" Jenny exclaimed; however, Alex's expression grew grim. "It was _wounded_. Whatever that Onix is up to in there, it hurt that Clefairy – it could be hurting lots of others too!" He observed, remembering the wounds he'd seen on its body; finally working her way down from the surprise, Jenny groaned.

"Clefairy are listed as a critically endangered species – strict laws exist to protect them from any kind of interference, natural or unnatural – the last person caught trying to poach one is _still_ serving prison time. This changes _everything_ ; that Onix definitely has got to go." Jenny said, unhappily. "I've got to report this to the other wardens, the research teams – _everyone_." The Ranger said, removing the radio from her shoulder harness.

"Nido!" Alex's attention was caught by Nidorina, who shifted impatiently, and nudged him in the back. "What is it?" He asked, perplexed by her sudden change in behavior; she seized his shirt in her jaws and tugged insistently, indicating the cave; clearly she wanted to pursue the Clefairy, or at least investigate the tunnel. "Hold on, just–Hey! Wait!" He called out, as Nidorina impatiently ceased her efforts at raising him, and instead bounded off for the tunnel alone, scaling a path of her own with reckless abandon.

"Hey, wait! Call her back!" Jenny said, but the distance was too great; the scarlet beam from Alex's pokéball skipped off dirt and rocks as he tried to aim it haphazardly, attempting to recall her. "Wait! Stay here, we can't afford to split up now!" Jenny said, grabbing Alex, who'd already risen to his feet. "I can't leave her alone with that thing in there! Radio the others to tell them where we are and then join me as soon as you can!" Alex said, beginning to pick his way across the same terrain that she had.

"Look, I understand you two have gotten close, but I can't just–" Ranger Jenny began to protest, until Alex stopped. "Look, I understand your concern. But you strike me as someone who genuinely cares about Pokemon – ask yourself: What would you do if you were in my position and that was your Heracross in there? Would you stay or go after him too?" Alex asked; looking pained, Jenny winced. "...Fine, go. But for goodness' sake, be careful – and no matter what, don't go too far! I don't want you to get lost or hurt in there!"

… _If that had been Felix, he wouldn't have been so undisciplined as to wander into the cave by himself…_ Alex thought gloomily, as Jenny began barking orders into her radio far behind him. _This is wonderful – Nidorina's the only one of the two of us that can handle herself, and I'M supposedly going to save her?_ The notion struck Alex sharply, and he briefly wondered at the wisdom of leaving Jenny's side. By this time, Nidorina had already approached the cave mouth and cautiously wandered inside.

Losing sight of his precious new friend sped Alex's pace even faster than before, and a sense of dread at not even being able to see the familiar Pokémon once she disappeared into the cave began to fill him. By the time he reached the opening of the tunnel a minute later, the sweat was already beading on his face, and his hands and legs were covered in small scrapes.

"N–!" Alex stopped, about to call out for Nidorina, when some measure of the caution the blue had worked to instill in him, took over: if Alex yelled here, it would echo inside the tunnel for heaven knew how long, alerting anything within earshot along the way, including the Onix. Quietly instead, he carefully stepped over the fainted Zubat, picking his way more carefully across the relatively flat surface of the tunnel entrance. The tunnel itself, pitch black as before at the peak, stretched out like a yawning mouth in front of him, and the extremely faint tingle of air escaping the deeper parts of the subterranean breezed past him.

The darkness reminded Alex very clearly of his lost flashlight, abandoned and crushed somewhere in the collapsed cavern at the peak of the mountain; Nidorina was not visible anywhere in the dim light at the entrance of the tunnel either. Quietly, and against his better judgement, Alex began picking a way into the darkness, feeling his way down the tunnel carefully.

As before, he seemed to be transported to a different world altogether eventually; after minutes of carefully edging his way foot by foot down the cave, he could discern the presence of some side passages all around him the deeper he went by touch – none of them seemed to reach out to him in any mystic way, which hopefully meant Nidorina had not chased the Clefairy down any of them and was still somewhere directly ahead. Within the natural formations – some no larger around than he imagined a Clefairy might fit through – began to appear odd, bioluminescent mushrooms, in blues, purples, and whites.

In the tunnel itself the Onix had pulverized through the rock, crushed bits of the Mushrooms, their light now almost extinguished, could be found rarely – carefully harvesting a number of the larger mushrooms, Alex carried them before him like a dim light, and in this way avoided twisting his ankle on some of the more treacherous parts of the cavern. _How the hell far did you go?!_ He demanded mentally of Nidorina, when he reached a split junction in the tunnel.

Evidently, the Onix had come and gone at least twice; one trail lead to the left, and gradually ascended – this likely went further up toward Mt. Moon's summit. The other, to the right, very clearly descended into the depths of the mountain. Alex sighed. _It figures it would come to this._ He thought. _Can't go wrong with right, I guess…. Or hope._ He thought, turning to the tunnel on the right – and stopping in his tracks. Jenny had not yet caught up, if she would even enter the tunnel at all – the side passages and junctions were becoming too numerous for her to follow much longer without losing his trail.

Carefully and quietly he removed his pack, and retrieved a large roll of yarn his mother had insisted he take with him, and he tied it around a few of the luminous mushrooms he'd harvested, and secured it in place with a loose rock. Dropping yarn on the cave floor at the entrance to the right tunnel and feeding the line behind him, he set about venturing down the deeper recesses of the passage, hoping that Jenny might find the sign of his passage.


	7. Chapter 7

The sounds of the human's footsteps continued to reach Nidorina's sensitive ears; with a mixture of relief that he had made it this far without losing himself, and the consternation that it was about damn time he did something right, she returned to sniffing the cave floor for the faintest scent of the Clefairy left behind by the creature's passing. On the surface, with its relative plethora of different smells and scents, the Nidorina would have never found a trail at all; however, down here, there was only the smell of rock and still air, and soon the blue discerned a faint and alien scent – Clefairy.

The Nidorina continued on, guided only by her nose and her burning curiosity; in the pitch black, there was nothing to see by, since the mushrooms only grew in the natural passages that lined each side, and not the tunnel the Onix had recently bored. Gradually, other smells began to intermingle, and Nidorina dreaded the possibility that the Clefairy trail would be lost, until she realized the smells the scent trail was being muddled in, were all very similar – and growing in strength.

 _There must be others of its kind here; one of them has to be the one I met on the mountainside._ The Nidorina thought; judging by the of the sounds still echoing in the cave passage behind her, the human was still on her tail – he had simply fallen far behind. However, the scent trails of the Clefairy were not yet strong enough even altogether that she felt they wouldn't be lost in the human's ambient scents when he joined her; thus, reluctantly, the Nidorina moved off again alone.

The sounds of the mountain rumbling somewhere to the fore made the Nidorina nervous; the Onix had might not yet have retraced its path down this tunnel, which would only mean it was still somewhere ahead. However, eventually, the scent trail the blue followed reached a comfortably strong presence of body that the Nidorina slackened her pace; she became confident that it was strong enough she might be able to follow it even in the presence of the human, and so finally stopped to listen for the biped's progress and wait for him to join her.

"Although you have delayed, it is good that you have come. _"_ The sudden noise in the otherwise silent cavern startled Nidorina so much that surprise stunned her completely, and she froze, unable to even cry out in surprise. When she was again in control of her faculties and certain her heart had not stopped, the blue rounded on the soft voice of the speaker, her eyes searching blindly in the dark. "Who are you? _Where_ are you _?!_ _"_ She demanded of the darkness in a barely hushed voice.

"You know who, or at least what I am – but, that is not important. It is not why you were brought here. _"_ The voice, soft, gentle, and melodic, reached out to her from the darkness; in the tight confines of the cave, it seemed to come from everywhere at once, and yet each time the Nidorina decided on the direction it likely came from, the source of the voice seemed to change again, dancing at the edge of her perceptions.

" _'_ Brought'? I came here of my own volition – I met one of your kind once before; it may have even been you specifically, in fact. You saved my human – although I am not at all ungrateful, I wanted to know how, and why. Why did you disappear? What is this place? _"_ The Nidorina spoke. "The answer to those questions will come in time. The taker you spoke of will be along, but for now, we have much to discuss. You can be trusted; come with me, mountain-sister. _"_ The voice said; Nidorina blinked in bewilderment.

The odd creature had spoken each sentence as a statement of fact, rather than question the Nidorina; although how the creature could be so certain of its statement was lost on the blue, she nevertheless felt relief at knowing the human would in fact find his way to her, somehow. Seemingly materializing out of the gloom, Nidorina now sensed the definite presence of the Clefairy beside her, walking now instead of hopping along.

" Make no mistake: I was sent to guide you here, mountain-sister. You are the first visitor to have been purposefully brought into our sanctuary in many years; we rarely leave it, and have never purposefully allowed takers to discover its presence. Greetings. _"_ The odd pink being said in its quiet, sing-song voice. " _'_ Takers'? _"_ The Nidorina repeated blankly; a brief stroke of intuition struck the blue, and her brow furrowed. "...Do you mean 'humans'?" The Nidorina asked, falling into step beside the Clefairy.

"That is what you call them, yes. Humans, Takers… They come, and they take. They take the Pokemon of the mountain away; they try to take our sisters and brothers away; they try to take the precious heart of the mountain away. They take, and they never leave anything but disharmony and emptiness behind them, and bring more of their kind, which always seek to take ever more. Thus, we have come to know them as takers; it is an unfortunate truth, but it is one we have had to learn to live with. _"_ The Clefairy said; nothing in her tone betrayed anger or resentment; Nidorina wondered at why the creature seemed almost passive in her description of their plight.

The Nidorina felt somewhat bewildered by the odd explanation – something about the Clefairy's logic seemed sound… And yet at the same time, the implications made the Nidorina uncomfortable; her thoughts drifted back to the human still fumbling his way blindly down the tunnel somewhere far behind – was he a taker? Although it was true he would undoubtedly 'take' them away from the mountain in time, both she and Featherbeak had joined him willingly.

"…Why have you brought me here? Brought us here, if visitors are not welcome? _"_ Nidorina asked, feeling a subtle nervousness creep into her. "We do not allow takers to find our home, but you are not truly a servant of theft; this was easy to see – thus, you are here. However, the one you travel with was another matter entirely. _"_ The Clefairy said, turning to look down the tunnel where sounds of the human picking his way through the rock continued to echo.

"What do you mean by that? _"_ The Nidorina asked, cautiously. The Clefairy was silent for a few moments – whether it was to listen to the progress of the human, to gather its thoughts, or some other reason altogether, the Nidorina was at a loss to guess at what. "The one you travel with – his intentions were difficult to read at first, and he was originally slated for removal if he tried to venture where he did not belong. _"_ The Clefairy replied, still with no inflections in her tone; Nidorina paused.

" _'_ Removal'? _"_ The blue repeated nervously, dreading the implications. "Removal. _"_ The Clefairy reaffirmed, its tone neutral. "We are already few enough; like you, we reserve the right to defend ourselves. He would have been compelled to either leave, or leave us alone; there are many ways to trick and misdirect takers so that they leave of their own accord. And if all else failed, we would have removed him ourselves, as we have sometimes had to do in the past. _"_ The Clefairy responded.

The Nidorina's spines raised slightly – the direction the conversation was going did not bode well. However, as she chose her next words, the blue let out a defeated sigh – a mental image of Featherbeak, staring silently at her, passed through the Nidorina's mind: the human's actions had spoken for themselves – it was finally time for the blue to admit that which Featherbeak probably already knew and she had not wanted to admit all along.

" _Y_ ou might have led me here because you want or need something from me, but if you hurt my human companion in any way, I will leave. Immediately. _"_ The Nidorina said, gradually feeling the beginnings of protectiveness stir within her; although the Nidorina dearly hoped to avoid conflict with the mysterious Clefairy, the threat was not an idle one. "…I have spent time in his company, watching the things he does. He is harmless, and an idiot, and while he may be a harmless idiot, he is  my harmless idiot. He's not a "taker" as you call him. _"_ The blue declared.

The Clefairy was silent for a few moments, before it finally spoke again. "...There was much debate on that subject. _"_ It remarked, unconvinced; further, the Nidorina could not tell if the comment was sarcasm or truth. "Although it was not you he was after when he first arrived on the Mountain, he  did come here to take, whether you realize it or not, mountain-sister." The Clefairy explained, sobering the Nidorina.

"I too will admit, he has changed much – very much – in the past few days, and that is the only reason we have brought you both here. He has been difficult to read from afar; that is why I was sent to study him closer, and to check up you. _"_ The Clefairy said; this statement stopped Nidorina in her tracks. "It may please you to note that I determined your sentiments about him to be true. _"_ The Clefairy remarked.

"I observed his attempt at capturing you from afar, but I realized he had only been trying to defend himself, per your remarks on his… Inexperience… I would never have intervened and saved him from ascending to the great beyond if I had learned otherwise. _"_ The Clefairy explained; the encounter had seemed so incidental – Nidorina could hardly believe it had all been premeditated.

" You two are both highly unconventional in your own ways, but there that is not necessarily a weakness. That your positive influence might rub off was the primary reason we decision to spare your companion, and that decision has begun to pay off – he might be ready to help us now. _"_ The Clefairy said. Nidorina stayed rooted in place. "What are you? How can you know all this? _"_ She asked.

"That is not important. You have seen the serpent that now plagues this mountain; it collapses our homes, risks leading the takers to us, and has unintentionally threatened to destroy that which is more precious to us than you could ever imagine. We cannot wait any longer; the time has come for you to act. _"_ The Clefairy explained, evenly, and the Nidorina warily regarded the Clefairy's words skeptically for a moment, since she could not see the Pokémon itself in the blackness.

"…You talk of all this foresight, and you saved my human from death. You sound as if you aren't exactly weak and defenseless; why, I'll bet you could easily deal with that Onix yourselves. Why do you need help from my human and I? _"_ Nidorina asked. The Clefairy fell silent, listening for the human, still working his way cautiously along by feel in the dark. "I returned the life to the outsider which you nearly took from him yourself. For a gift so precious, a simple favor is all we ask in return. _"_ The Clefairy replied.

"I'm… Not ungrateful, and I'm not unsympathetic to your plight. I only want to know why you seem to think we'll do so much better a job dealing with this Onix than you. _"_ The Nidorina pressed, unwilling to be guilt-tripped into silence. The Clefairy paused, evidently listening for the human, who was now beginning to pick up speed; Nidorina guessed he must have been close enough to begin hearing their conversation, and sped up.

"Regarding the serpent: Yes, we could easily banish it from this place ourselves – but, that is not in our best long-term interest. As for myself, I am not hiding anything – I gave only specific answers to the questions you asked. _"_ The Clefairy answered, evidently contented to fall silent and remain so now that the human approached. " _That still wasn't a straight answer."_ Nidorina insisted, after it became apparent no additional responses were forthcoming. " _That is because_ _now_ _I am not answering your questions."_ It finally replied.

"You're rather nosy, for not being a taker. _"_ The Clefairy remarked, but hesitated for a moment, before finally speaking. "You were born here; you were raised here. You were once as much a part of this mountain as we are; in some ways, you will always will be, mountain-sister. _"_ The mysterious creature said; the past-tense wording of its response made the Nidorina frown. "For that reason, we wanted to keep this matter 'within the family', so to speak, before you drifted from here and embraced the ways of the outsider." The Clefairy explained.

Nidorina bristled at this statement, but the creature spoke again before she could protest. "As for involving your human, should you two prevail over the serpent, then it may be that the _human_ will embrace the ways of the mountain – and if he does, then he may yet prove to be useful to us in the future, as a sometime-ally. " At this, Nidorina said nothing, merely falling silent for a moment.

"I suppose you already know that there is another human here, up on the surface? _"_ Nidorina asked. "Yes. My revealing myself to you with her there was a calculated risk; she will try to follow you, but she will be led intentionally astray of this place, for her own safety and ours. We cannot risk exposing ourselves to her; her curiosity will only want to bring more and more of her kind here – however well-intentioned they may be at first – and that we simply cannot allow. _"_

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"The outsider, is he here _?"_ A new voice in the darkness asked, and the human started slightly, as did Nidorina; he mumbled something in human speak, reaching out to place a hand on Nidorina's flank; the simple knowledge that he was here brought her a small measure of comfort, though he said nothing. "Yes, elder. And the mountain-pup is here as well. _"_ This reference made the Nidorina's ears twitch; the Nidorina was caught off guard by this new and unknown being's even more eerie silence; she'd listened her hardest and never heard any hint of anyone other than the human join them.

"We are both here; what happens now? _"_ Nidorina asked, wishing for once that she had been born a Zubat, that she may see what else inhabited the subterranean cavern the guide had brought them to sometime earlier. "The serpent approaches – although it does not realize it yet, its course will finally bring it directly into contact with our home and our source of power; we must halt its advance here, or it will bring utter calamity upon us. Your outsider and you will need to meet it head on. _"_ The being said; the sing-song voice betrayed no emotion at all, despite the apparent gravity of the situation.

" You make it sound as if you've been expecting this Onix to attack all along." Nidorina observed. "We have. This has not been the first time it has run afoul of our kind in the past lunar cycle; the serpent ails, and its condition is driving it increasingly mad, making it strike out against anything and everything in its path, including us. Come. _"_ The mysterious Elder bade her, and together, Alex and the Nidorina shuffled blindly along until gradually, she discerned light somewhere ahead – the human picked up his speed, and the Nidorina followed.

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The pair exited the tunnel and found themselves standing in a small open-air chamber in which dozens of Clefairy industriously moved about; late evening sun poured through the skylight-like hole in the cavern ceiling, illuminating an enormous glittering mass in the center of the cavern. The reflective shine of a large pile of small glittering rocks illuminated the Clefairy as they bustled about it, seemingly hard at work transporting the brilliantly scintillating shards of what may have once been a much larger stone to and fro; the sight was one that Alex was totally unprepared for.

There were many of the incredibly rare pink creatures going and coming, and unfortunately, the longer Alex watched, the more it became apparent that these Pokemon's almost regimented work speed was not natural; desperation fueled them, and with a low rumbling that came and went every now and then it didn't take long for him to decide their unusual behavior was closely linked with that of the Onix rampaging through the mountain.

Almost all of the Clefairy ignored Alex entirely in their work, very few randomly pausing to regard him with varying degrees of curiosity, and of those few, even less of them seemed to take interest in the presence of Nidorina. For her part, Nidorina watched them come and go impassively from her place seated beside Alex; more than a few of them nursed tell-tale injuries that made Alex's heart bleed in sympathy.

 _If Ranger Jenny was right about how rare these creatures are, any trainer in the world would probably kill for the opportunity to find this place,_ Alex thought, uncomfortably. _Capturing_ _even just_ _one_ _of these Clefairy_ _would probably make me famous, and_ _Ranger_ _Jenny wouldn't even bat an eyelash if I went for one of the weaker ones and claimed I wanted to_ _rescue and rehabilitate_ _a fainted one I found in the tunnels_. However, the more Alex looked upon the creatures, the less attractive the idea became, until at last he finally brushed the thoughts from his mind – he was perfectly content with the companionship his new Nidorina and Noctowl offered.

The thought of stealing one of these Clefairy from its home rankled in Alex's mind just as much as had the idea of stealing the Nidorina away against her will; even though several of the creatures easily stood within arm's reach, watching him, Alex instead moved closer to the Nidorina and rested a hand fondly on her head – encouraged, the curious onlookers drew in a little closer.

"...If only Ranger Jenny could be here to see this–" Alex began to mumble to himself aloud, stopping mid-sentence. _Crap! Jenny! She's probably going nuts looking for me!_ Alex thought, suddenly frantic to return to the surface. However, as Alex turned to regard the yawning black tunnel they had just exited, a conspicuously larger Clefairy – in actuality, a unicorn of unicorns: a Clefable, if Alex's memory served him correctly – approached unseen from beside them. It turned to their erstwhile guide, and the two seemed to have an otherwise silent exchange, and turned to him.

"Cle- _fa-_ ble." It said softly, and to Alex's mystification, it began using hand gestures: First it simulated a waving, slithering motion with one hand, pointed at itself, then smacked a balled fist into its other hand. Next, it pointed to Alex and Nidorina, back to itself, and then at one of many caves that presumably lead away from the chamber, and the oddly reflective rock at the center of the chamber around which all the Clefairy seemed to be working; the Clefable then concluded by pointing to all the other Clefairy working uninterrupted, and then the three of them again, and finished by signing a passable imitation of a Hitmonchan raising his guard to box with.

 _This is too much to take in…_ _I_ _f it's telling me what I think it's telling me..._ Alex thought. It was obvious the first gesture was in reference to the Onix; it didn't take a behavioral psychologist to realize the second half of the exchange clearly constituted as a plea for help. "Nidoooo…." The Nidorina said, turning to regard Alex in the same way the Clefairy were; the niggling suspicion that Nidorina could understand the Clefairy on some level struck Alex, and for a moment he wished sorely that he could understand Pokemon-speak.

For a few moments, Alex's mind raced as he glanced at the assembly of Clefairy; one by one they all gradually began to stop, staring at him. _They must be afraid that Onix is going to attack this place,_ Alex realized. Protective instincts welled up within Alex as he turned to regard the Nidorina – it would be her that would bear the brunt of the fight on her shoulders, and the thought that he might already have to say goodbye to the personable blue should something happen to her in the fight hurt too terribly to even think about.

"I want to help you guys, I really do…" Alex muttered aloud; it had not been his intention to get dragged into the fight alone – their original plan had called for Jenny helping him confront the Onix with her Heracross, not him alone with his Nidorina and possibly the help of a Clefable. _Then again, the original plan also called for sticking together and avoiding the thing until more help arrived, but it's too late for that now too, isn't it?_ Alex silently berated himself.

" My human doesn't seem to want to help you." The Nidorina observed; the Clefable smiled – it was the first display of emotion the blue had seen out of one of the creatures yet. "No… He's concerned about you, and what could happen to you in the coming fight. He won't force you into danger without your consent." The Clefable corrected, surprising the Nidorina.

" That would be wonderful – _if_ it were true. How do  you know?" The Nidorina asked quietly, trying to suppress the burst of hope she secretly felt that the Clefable's observation might be true. "I am an elder; it is my _responsibility_ to use my wisdom and intuition to guide my brethren in times of crisis such as this one, Mountain-daughter. Reading this human is not so difficult for one as incredibly old and world-versed as I." The Clefable stated, lazily.

" Although I congratulate you on your good fortune and wish you much luck by his side, the fact remains that we still need your help, and time is running out." The Clefable explained, after a moment. "If you are to help us, then you must communicate your willingness to fight in this cause to your human. You must make him understand your intent."

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Quietly, the Nidorina rose, and quietly walked to sit beside the Clefable; Alex inhaled deeply, unable to resist the surge of fear that filled him, both for her sake and his own – the Nidorina had evidently understood the Clefable after all, and chosen a side. "I… Don't know if you can understand me or not, but… Well, it looks like we're here to help." Alex said to the Clefable; without saying a word more, the Clefable turned and began leading them along, leaving their Clefairy guide behind – the Nidorina waited patiently as Alex moved to her side.

Together the trio entered a different tunnel passage, which still remained pitch black; however, a low rumble reached them and it set Alex's heart to beating faster – the longer they walked, the louder the occasional rumbles became; with his hand upon her back for comfort and to make sure he didn't get lost, Alex could sense the Nidorina begin to tense up as well.

Their guide presumably continued to move somewhere up ahead, though Alex couldn't see anything; that lack of sensory perception made the darkness become oppressive, but still the Nidorina did not turn tail and flee – _If she has the guts to press on, then so can I; I won't leave her in here,_ Alex resolved. After a time they arrived in a rather large subterranean chamber similar to the one at the peak of the mountain; the Clefable must have stopped, because Nidorina did as well.

"Cle-fable." A dainty voice quietly whispered out in front of them, and it was answered by a vocalization from the Nidorina. Their voices echoed in the chamber; tense moments passed, and eventually the two fell silent. Alex nervously reached for the ball that contained the Noctowl, which he imagined would soon rise out of habit – it was probably beginning to get dark soon, and the creature had slept most of the day away.

 _Ranger Jenny was right… I really shouldn't be using this poor bird to battle_ _with_ _in his condition – with his wing broken, he'll probably be more of a_ _hindrance_ _and a danger to himself than anything else._ Alex fretted; however, a low, steady rumble that did not fade away began to build up, and the Nidorina's spines began to rise. _We'll need_ _absolutely_ _all the help we can get…_ _Oh,_ _I only pray he can_ _avoid having to do any heavy fighting_ _!_ Alex thought helplessly, releasing the Noctowl, and hoping the noise wouldn't be detected by the Onix.

"Cle-fa-ble…. Cle-fa-ble… Cle-fa-ble…" The Clefable began an odd sing-song chant beside Alex – it was swiftly ignored as he tried vainly to widen his eyes and see through the dark, to catch even a glimpse of the Onix before it was upon them; the Noctowl hooted from beside Alex, first questioningly, and then with alarm as it probably realized where it must have been.

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" _Where are we? What is going on?!"_ Featherbeak asked in alarm, easily pinpointing a very disconcerting rumble from almost directly ahead of them with his keen hearing; from beside him in the dark, Nidorina answered. " _We're below ground; we're going to encounter the Onyx we chased off last night soon."_ Nidorina responded, though her blind, unseeing eyes rolled around fearfully in her head as she tried to imagine where the Onix would appear from in the dark.

The chanting of the Clefable in the darkness somewhere near Featherbeak caught his attention, and he gasped in shock – however, it seemed to be concentrating on its chant, and added nothing to the conversation. " _This Clefable and all of its kind need our help; that Onix is o_ _n_ _it's on its way here, and if we don't stop it it's going to massacre them and_ _lay waste_ _to_ _their home; I don't know what in the world the human was thinking of by releasing you, but get to safety Featherbeak!"_ Nidorina commanded, her voice extremely tense with concern.

" _Nonsense! There's nowhere for me to run, and in any event I'm not leaving you_ _two_ _. I can hear the Onix; it will be upon us soon – if really want to bring it down as quickly as possible, our only chance will be to surprise it."_ Featherbeak responded; on the tail of that statement, a tangible, almost electric tingle in the air suddenly caught the group's attention; Featherbeak paused. " _Is it doing what I think it's doing?"_ He asked in wonder, cocking his head back directly ahead of them to where the rumbling was growing louder – the rocky floor of the cave was beginning to shake beneath their feet.

" _I_ _don't know – i_ _t said something about helping out in the coming battle just before the human released you, but it's just been sitting there babbling that stupid chant over and over again."_ Nidorina said, a nervous edge creeping in her voice; in listening for just a few more seconds, Featherbeak shook his head – Featherbeak strongly guessed it was an incantation, not a chant.

Before he could explain the purpose of the Clefable's spell and the significance of its rhythmic chant, a soft glow began to emit from the pink creature's finger-tips, which grew quickly in intensity, illuminating the cave until the entire cavern was filled with bright light – Alex covered his eyes with a grunt of pain, Featherbeak was forced to bury his face beneath his good wing, and the Nidorina squalled in surprise and discomfort, blinking.

" _What are you doing!?"_ The blue demanded harshly of the Clefable, who only raised its hands higher, making the cave grow lighter. " _No!_ _"_ The Clefable called, its melodic voice ringing clearly like a bell in the cave over the rumble of the Onix, _"_ Let your eyes adjust to the brightness of Flash; we will be ready when the serpent bursts into this cavern, and it will not. _"_ The Clefable answered; tense moments passed in silence as the three of them all blinked away the haze caused by the blinding light.

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Alex's eyes began to adjust to the small sun the Clefable seemed to be generating from its finger-tips, and the shaking under his feet reached a fever pitch; Nidorina stood in front of him, squared off for a fight and with a harsh grimace on her face – beside her, the Noctowl stood on the floor of the cave, defying his haggard and decrepit appearance by standing firmly expectant and tall, as if he'd been battling all his life; neither of them no longer seemed ready to bolt, having committed themselves to the coming fight.

Alex swallowed; the pounding of his heart began to fade slightly as memories of the past few days began to replay in his head: from his first encounter with the Nidorina, to the sting he suffered by accident, the incidents with the Graveller and Ekans, her stuffy companionship at first, the wild flight at the top of the mountain, and finally, the momentarily icy direction their relations took after the incident with the Pokeballs, all began to press down upon him.

 _I can't keep dragging them down with my inexperience,_ Alex reminded himself. _*I* wouldn't willingly follow me either if I knew how much of a dolt I've been acting like – I can't keep expecting them to carry me along – I promised the Nidorina I'd get better; that starts now._ Alex resolved, working to sublimate his fear; his mind began to clear, pushing away distracting thoughts and focusing on the fight to come. Dropping to a knee beside the blue, he pointed to his nose. "Nidorina, when that thing arrives, use your poison sting attack on it like you did with the Graveller." He ordered.

…Unfortunately, the blue only turned and looked at Alex quizzically, never having been given a battle command by a human thus far in her entire life – she clearly did not understand him. A moment later, the wall directly across from them through exploded, sending chunks of rock bouncing everywhere deafeningly. " **GROAHAR...** " The Onyx rumbled, its massive head plowing into the cavern that would serve as the battleground.

" _ **GR**_ _ **O**_ _ **AHARRHHGH!**_ " The Onyx roared in surprise, as the blinding light of the Clefable struck it square in the eyes; it blinked and tried to shut them – leaping from the tips of the boulders the Onix had knocked loose and running at full speed, Nidorina closed the distance between her and the giant rock snake in seconds; Alex's breath caught in his throat as the Nidorina took a flying leap, and head-butted the creature as hard as she could. The Onyx recoiled in shock, its head smacking into the roof of the cave and threatening to collapse the entire cavern.

"No! I said poison sting! Use your _poison sting_!" Alex cried and pantomimed desperately at the Nidorina, as several chunks of rock tumbled from cracks now smashed into the ceiling, and a thick cloud of dust and sand filled the air; realizing the purpose of the blinding light ahead of it and that it was now under attack, the Onix immediately retaliated. Though nearly blinded by the haze of dust, Nidorina spotted the giant shadow of the serpent explode into motion, and she narrowly avoided being bitten in half by its mighty jaws as the rock serpent shot forward – instead, it pulverized a rock the blue jumped off at the last moment.

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" _You're welcomed to join this fight!_ _A_ _ny time!"_ Nidorina shouted at the Clefable over the earsplitting crash of rock on rock as Onyx spat out the granulated remains of the boulder in its mouth and retreated cautiously, squinting against the fading light of the Clefable's finger-tips. "I already have! If I had not blinded it, it would have eaten half of you just now and crushed the rest of us! _"_ The Clefable answered, its sibilant voice carrying over the din of battle to Nidorina's ears.

"We have to find a way to actually _stop_ it – and soon! – or it'll bring the whole mountain down on top of our heads! _"_ The blue yelled, until Featherbeak's voice cut her off. "Ready your next attack. I'll try distract it as long as we can! _"_ The elderly Noctowl said, stiffly hopping forward a few paces. Featherbeak's mind raced – a distraction was much easier said than done with him being nearly useless in his condition; he could hardly move without hurting, let alone attack.

" _Featherbeak, you stay out of this!_ It's too dangerous for you to–! _"_ Nidorina cried out shrilly in fear, until the human cut her off, shouting out a string of words that sounded like gibberish to Nidorina. " _Aha! A capital strategy!_ " Featherbeak cried out, evidently understanding and recognizing the words the human had used, and giving thanks to Arceus that old age and infirmity had not lessened his grasp on the technique.

Clearing his mind of the fear of battle, Featherbeak began to focus his thoughts on the Onix somewhere before him in the dark, habitually rocking his head back and forth in a gentle cadence that had brought comforting rest on many sleepless nights in Nidorina's youth: _Sleep. We will be gone when you awaken; just go to sleep for now…._ _There is no need_ _to fight – relax, and sleep._

The bombardment of soothing thoughts soon made the Onix's heavy stone eyelids begin to sink lower and lower as Featherbeak's Hypnosis began to take effect. The rock creature began to settle down; a moment later the rock Pokémon yawned, on the cusp of slumber…. And then a rock dislodged itself from the ceiling where the Onix hit it earlier. The basketball sized stone fell a short distance before smacking into the Onix's head; the loud thump echoed in the darkness, breaking Featherbeak's hypnotic spell entirely.

A loud grating rumble filled the cavern as lucidness returned to the Onix, and its already angry tone became one of almost rabid fury. " _It's enraging itself. If it begins to attack_ _with Rage_ _, we won't be able to stop it!"_ Featherbeak yelled, a nervous quaver entering his voice – Nidorina took a step back, startled at having heard such fear in the old Noctowl in a long time. The Clefable shouted its sing-song chant; the pink Pokémon's fingers began to adopt the unique glow that heralded its metronome attack, but the flash did little this time to illuminate the hazy, dusty cavern, and the Onix's eyes were already clenched shut as it concentrated on infuriating itself.

An instant later, the rock Pokémon shot forward toward; though the Clefable tried to react, the Onix's uncoordinated, furious lunge still caught the pink creature too quickly for it to properly react – it attempted to dance away, and received a glancing blow that sent the Clefable sprawling bodily. Consumed in its wild fury, it began to violently thrash around like a possessed whip, slamming into the cavern walls and ceiling, flailing madly. Featherbeak saw the snake rear up to squash him as well – he'd never be able to escape it on his own in time; time slowed, as he watched his doom begin to fall upon him. He clicked his beak once, clenching it tightly.

An instant before he was crushed into owl paste, Featherbeak felt himself suddenly become weightless: "Return! RETURN!" Alex yelled, aiming at the Noctowl and firing his pokeball's red beam of light directly at him; the Onix's head came crashing down, and slammed against the cave floor. Sensing the blood Its rage built and now in full force, the Onix reared back again, focusing a savage, hateful glare at the source of the horribly familiar burst of scarlet light; standing with Featherbeak's ball clutched in his hand, Alex froze, looked up at where he imagined the Onix to be – the Clefable's light source had winked out entirely once it had been flattened.

With a loud roar, the Onix darted forward like a cobra – and was intercepted by a different flash of light in the dark that nearly stole Alex's breath away. The Nidorina, realizing she no longer had to worry about Featherbeak anymore thanks to Alex's thinking dashed forward – leaping with all of the powerful muscle in her stout legs, the Nidorina whirled, aiming her Iron Tail directly at where the Onix was preparing to thrash again; the deafening crack of the impact against the Onix made Alex's ears ring, and the attack threw back the Onix with such force that its head slammed into the cavern wall behind it, again jarring loose an unnerving amount of debris from the rumbling cavern.

 _If I survive this, I'm never stepping foot outside_ _my room_ _in my life again,_ Alex thought to himself absently; the dust and shards of flying rock in the cave had begun to reach epidemic levels, and Alex coughed without being able to stop himself. A loud, low groan from the far side of the cave audible over the clatter of rocks settling, signaled that the Onix had been dealt a severe blow by the Nidorina's iron tail; although it was still too dark to see, from the lack of sound, it had fainted or was very close to fainting. _That's just as well… I'll have my Nidorina for company._ Alex thought, feeling a tightness in his chest as his worry returned to the blue – she had gone quiet also.

Ignoring the defeated Onix, Alex stumbled over loose boulders, feeling around in the dark for the Nidorina. "Nidorina!" Alex called shakily; the echo against the cave walls startled him, but he ignored the fear in his frantic scramble to locate the blue. Crackling rocks from beside him signaled movement; hurriedly feeling his way through the choking dust and dark, his fingers touched spines for the first time since the fight started. The Nidorina moaned; evidently she had been struck by a falling rock. But to Alex's immense relief, she got unsteadily to her feet after a few seconds and gently shook her head.

"Are you okay? You did wonderfully in here!" Alex declared softly into her ear, hugging her tightly; in spite of the pain of having been nearly flattened by an Onix, the Nidorina licked his cheek gently and leaned into him for support – though it would have been nice to have avoided being crushed, the most important thing to her at that point was that the human had been fast enough to save Featherbeak, who would have been killed for sure. Rocks tumbled as the Onix shifted weakly, regaining its own senses; Alex's heart caught in his throat as he heard it right itself.

"Nidorina, I know you're hurt, but now is our only chance to finish that monster off, once and for all. Quickly, use your _poison sting_ attack!" He said, more insistently than before; she evidently still didn't understand his command, because no sound of her preparing to move to attack penetrated the darkness. "Poison. Sting." He repeated more slowly, and then gently putting a hand on her ear, he worked traced his finger underneath the largest crested spines that bordered it, and tugged on them gently. "Sting. _Sting_." He said; and then gently booped her on the nose where she had accidentally stung him that first day on the mountainside.

Evidently this finally engendered understanding of what he wanted in the Nidorina, because she steadied herself and quickly began picking her way across the ground; terrified, Alex debated whether or not to stay or go, and after just a moment's hesitation, he advanced behind her. Dust and tiny rocks continued to snow on Alex from the ceiling above; in the instant he removed his hand from Nidorina's back to rub a few sandy pebbles from his eyes, the blue moved forward and snarled out a challenge. "I said _STING_ the damn thing, not warn it we were coming!" Alex cried out, exasperated.

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" _You!"_ Nidorina accused the fallen Onix, sharply. " _You almost killed Featherbeak!_ _A_ _nd my human!"_ Nidorina snarled at the Onix, past the pain of the numerous bruises she had probably collected in the scuffle once again. "…M-more humans? They are here already again?" The Onix slurred, its gravelly voice tight with pain and misery. "Yes, MY human! He wants me to finish you off, and probably with good reason, but I'll give you one more chance: Give up. In your condition, you wouldn't survive a full dose of my most potent toxins; please, _don't_ make me to have to finish you off!" Nidorina demanded.

The Onix made a noise that sounded like a cross between a snort and a challenge. "Do whatever you must, but know that I won't submit; I won't go back and become an experiment again – ever!" The Onix retorted as sharply as it could in its faint condition. Nidorina paused, perplexed at the wounded creature's statement. " _Experiment?_ _"_ The blue repeated, hesitantly. "What in the world are you talking about?" She asked. Although the Onix shifted, it was only barely – it took let out a shaky groan, finally too weak to do much more than lay there

"Humans… Human came for me in my mountain; they were dressed in black and red, and their Pokemon were as twisted and cruel as they. They sent their slaves to beat me like you did until I was weak enough to capture." The Onix spoke, pain thick in its voice. " They took me to a place where nightmares become real – human devices everywhere, beeping, buzzing, hurting…! _"_ The creature began to babble, sounding half-mad as it began to remember its ordeal.

"They did something to me there – they made me hurt in ways I could never imagine. I still hurt; it hurts now, and will continue to hurt as long as I live. I cannot sleep; I cannot eat, I cannot think, I can't function like this; there is only pain… So much pain! …And it must end!" The Onix cried out, inconsolable; having never left the mountain in her entire life, the Onix's story at first sounded completely outlandish to Nidorina… However, listening to the utterly defeated and mentally broken Onix before her, doubt began to form in her mind; the creature's tone was too full of agony, of despair, to even begin to be a ruse, or a lie – already, the docile blue ceased thoughts of harming the Onix any further, and instead feeling grave concern.

"If what you say is true… Won't you allow my human to help you?" Nidorina asked. "He is clumsy and weak, but he carries with him an odd liquid that removes pain, and he is not wicked like your humans were – he has used this liquid on me before. At first I did not like him, but he has proven himself friendly, and has not done anything to harm me or the Noctowl you nearly crushed; he is very different from the humans you describe. He will help you!" The Nidorina urged. Almost immediately, the Onix scoffed sharply, sending a cloud of dust billowing into the Nidorina's face.

"I won't fall for trickery and lies, soft-skin. Let's end this now – I won't submit to more torture. One of the two of us isn't leaving this cavern alive, and I don't care if it's not going to be me!" It threatened, with bitter finality. Nidorina growled in frustration, her heart weighing heavily; she didn't want to finish the ailing creature off, but this Onix clearly couldn't be reasoned with. "An entire colony of peaceful Clefairy and Clefable live just beyond this passage, and you would have destroyed them and their home in your madness. Live or die, you can't be allowed to hurt anyone else." Nidorina finally squared off, ready to resume mortal combat with the rock beast.

Seconds passed, but the Onix made no move; it fell silent and the abruptness of the silence made the Nidorina hesitate in striking the final blow. "You're… You're bluffing. Clefairy only exist in one place in the world, and it is far from here. It has to be!" The Onix said, confused. "I'm _not_ bluffing; didn't you see it when you attacked it earlier?" Nidorina asked. The Onix remained silent for some time, so Nidorina sat listening intently for any shift or indication that the serpent might try to gather the strength to strike again.

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Alex had effectively no idea what in the world Nidorina and the Onix seemed to be talking about; at times their discussion seemed to border on barely restrained argument, and at others, pleading and begging; however, Alex became aware of one thing – gradually, the longer Nidorina spoke, the less outwardly dangerous the Onix's demeanor seemed to become. Although it took a considerable leap of faith, Alex quietly and gently began to take steps back across the cave – immediately the Onix tensed and went silent, but no effort to attack materialized after Alex reached the tunnel they'd come through.

Feeling around in the dark, his fingers touched very soft, almost downy-like fur in the dark. "Cle- _fable_." The owner of the fur replied, sitting up with his help in the dark unsteadily. "You're alright… Thank goodness!" He said to the pink creature, although he knew the Clefable – like the Nidorina – probably couldn't understand him; it reached out and rested a minuscule paw on his own hand for a moment, patting it gently; awestruck, Alex touched it with his other hand.

 _Wow…_ _I got to touch a real, live Clefable – Mom will never believe me in a million years when I tell her about any of this;_ _nobody_ _will, unless I captured this one to prove it,_ Alex thought. This Clefable was there, weakened and ripe for capture, but… _After fighting this hard to keep them from getting wiped out, it be a crime against all good and decency to take it away from its home forever._ Alex thought, again letting any thought of capturing the Clefable fade from his mind: _No..._ _Nidorina's enough for me. And the Noctowl._ The pink creature accepted the human's help standing up.

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A tiny throat cleared itself of the dust hanging in the air of the cave. " _I have nothing else to offer you in the way of reassurance, other than to voice my support for the Nidorina._ " The Clefable said in its lilting sing-song voice, stiffly brushing itself off daintily, and beginning to pick its way through the field of fallen rocks along the cave floor, even in total darkness – the Onix fell silent, evidently bewildered by the truth of the Clefable.

"Know that this particular human was no friend of ours initially; in fact, it was not our intention to involve him in our affairs even after we realized that he visited the mountain. However, this Nidorina and him have forged the beginnings of a very powerful partnership – and, although the practice of forceful enslavement of Pokemon falls beyond the concerns or experience of me or my people, we do know that humans who can convince Pokemon to follow them rather than subjugating them, are very rare indeed, and highly desirable as companions." The Clefable said, as it approached.

"I would add that your description of the takers that have injured you is familiar to me. They have attacked our home and us before – this human is not one of them." The pink fairy added, certainty and stiffness in her tone. The Onix was silent for a long while – its mind worked. "...There is only one mountain where your kind are rumored to exist… That can only mean that I must have traveled much farther from my home range in my madness than I thought." The rock-serpent eventually remarked, its voice still taught with pain.

"I do not know what ails you, nor can I help you." The Clefable said somewhat bluntly. "But, if anything can, it is likely this human. To be fair, I will admit that I cannot guarantee your safety, but for what it is worth, and at the risk of sounding horribly vain, if we – in our infinite rarity – have little to fear from him in the way of capture, then a common Onix should have even less to be worried about where exploitation is concerned." The Clefable stated, without ego. Even so, the Onix let out a great and contemptuous rumble at this statement, but did not argue.

"What would you have me do then? I loathe the idea of being trapped in the human's ball!" It demanded, angrily – the Nidorina reeled back and dropped to her rump as if slapped by such a statement. Those very words might have come from her own mouth just a night before. "...It is not so bad once you get used to it; and he will free you from time to time, and care for you the way he cares for me and the Noctowl that was with me." Nidorina said shakily; they were more or less the same words Featherbeak had used on her just the day previously.

"You should speak with my Noctowl friend; he has spent most of his life traveling with humans and he convinced me to give this one a chance. He is convinced this one is kind!" The Nidorina urged. The Onix let out a rumble of protest. "I don't believe you." It stated, with bitter finality. "Please… Don't let pain cloud your judgment. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. How could you possibly lose anything more than your life?" The Nidorina pleaded; the Onix was silent for a while longer, then sighed deeply.

"If this is some kind of trick, or another lie… " It threatened fiercely, but trailed off as its voice broke, too aggrieved to continue; there was an exhaustion – an utter, all consuming tiredness of life itself – in the Onix's voice that the blue realized was not physical. It had been something the blue had never seen before in another living creature thus far in life, and seeing what terrible toll it had taken on the Onix pierced the Nidorina to the very core.

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The sound of footsteps clumsily crossing the rock-strewn cave floor scattering pebbles as she went, alerted Alex to Nidorina's approach. A moment later, the blue bumped into his knee, making him jump. "What's going on?" Alex demanded, nervously; Nidorina snuffled slightly, digging her nose into his leg. "What? What is it?" He asked more insistently, still trying to keep his ears peeled for any sign of aggression from the Onix; Nidorina bit down on his pant-leg and jerked, nearly pulling his jeans off.

"Ow! What are you _doing_?" He asked, and then realized she was not trying to get at his jeans themselves, but something in his pocket. Withdrawing the contents – his handful of pokéballs – he paused as she ceased her nipping and sat. "Is it the Noctowl you want?" The human asked; releasing Featherbeak a moment later – however, Nidorina scratched at him once with a paw as Featherbeak materialized.

"...Are we _leaving_? What about the Onix?!" Alex tried again; however Nidorina vocalized impatiently at him in response. A moment later, a tiny hand touched his other pant leg; the Clefable had soundlessly approached, and tugged at it gently. "What's–?" He began to ask, when the entire cave began to rumble. " _What's going on!?"_ Alex demanded, as the Onix approached; he wanted to run, but the Clefable held him fast, willing him to stay put; even the Nidorina moved to block his retreat in the dark. The sounds of the Onix became deafening, and the sensation of a massive presence in front of him made him flinch – until the Onix stopped. It let out a long, low, and somewhat threatening growl at him, blowing Alex's hair and clothes back as it did so… But, it made no other move.

Having flinched mightily, Alex opened an eye – a useless gesture in the darkness – and paused. "What–?" He began to ask, until the memory of Nidorina's attempts to reach the pokéballs in his pocket dawned on him. "It wants to come _with_ me?!" He demanded in sheer disbelief. Slowly, Clefable's pressure on his leg eased; in the absence of any other explanation, it was the only logical answer. The Onix rumbled once as Alex reached out tentatively and touched its massive snout in the dark – the creature did not shy away from his grasp… Or eat his arm off.

Numbed, but deciding to seize the moment before the Onix changed its mind, Alex expanded an empty pokéball ball with a whir, and touched it to the serpent's nose. A bright red flash momentarily illuminated the cave, and the last thing Alex could see of the giant Pokemon before it turned to a featureless cloud of red energy were its gigantic pair of stony eyes staring balefully down at him.

Swallowing deeply and clenching the now-filled and now _far_ heavier than usual pokéball containing the Onix, Alex shook his head slowly in mute disbelief. _That's it: I must actually still be dying on a hillside somewhere from that first accidental poisoning I got from the Nidorina – I have to be in a coma and dreaming. Or hallucinating. This is unbelievable._


	8. Chapter 8

" Ahhh… And so it seems that our gamble paid off." The Clefable muttered to itself aloud, exhaling in relief – Nidorina's keen ears did miss the statement. "What do you mean by that?!" The blue demanded; her spines began to stand up slightly out of nervousness. To find out now that the Clefable had apparently _also_ been hoping blindly for a victory against the Onix was disconcerting to the Nidorina more than a little.

" What I mean is that I suspect we'll be seeing more of you in the future than we originally feared we might, mountain-daughter." The Clefable replied. "At first, we thought you would be taken away from here forever... But, that may not necessarily be the case anymore. _"_ It explained. "What do you mean? How can you know?" The Nidorina pressed.

" Like the Onix, you and this Noctowl are not being taken away; you are _following_ him away, of your own free will. I concede the point: your human is not a taker – he is a leader. And while his path is still very unclear to me, I suspect he will return to this mountain in the future, if only out of a warped sense of Nostalgia. Humans are fairly impressionable creatures, and that is what were counting on." The Clefable paused, turning to explain more fully. "I still don't understand." The Nidorina replied.

" Earlier you asked why we did not destroy the serpent ourselves; you were _correct_ in your assumptions that the feat was within our power – although my life might have been forfeited in the attempt, I myself could probably have done the deed should it have become absolutely necessary." The Clefable stated, again without ego. "However, if we had subdued the serpent ourselves, it would have robbed your human of the sense of victory in what you have accomplished here, saying nothing of the hardship it would have caused the others of my kind." The Clefable explained.

The Nidorina's face tightened slightly, at this. "His perceived triumph might instill desire to wander in him, and if it does, then your travels together will teach you two to think and act as one in time." The Clefable explained, somewhat lazily. "I doubt we'll ever have much to fear from him now or in the future, which means should we ever have need of help with a problem we _can't_ solve on our own, your human will remember his time among us fondly. As a mountain-guardian, he will aid us in such times of need." The Clefable explained; "…Plus, it certainly won't hurt to be able to call on you and your raw strength either should we need to, mountain-daughter." The Clefable finished, and the Nidorina detected the ghost of an amused undertone in its voice.

" ...What happens now?" Featherbeak finally spoke up, breaking his silence. "That's none of our concern." The Clefable said, bluntly. " Our focus will be on what it always has been: Our work here within the mountain. It must continue if we are ever to going recover from the damage the serpent did manage to cause us." The Clefable replied – the sound of fracturing and crumbling rock, which had been a quiet backdrop to the conversation, now grew louder. "Come now. It's time for you to return to the surface – guide your human so that he does not get lost in the dark. Quickly." The Clefable ordered, ending the conversation immediately.

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Conversation seemed flow between the Clefable, Nidorina; unsure of what they were saying, Alex became preoccupied with the sagging weight in his jeans pocket. _This Onix is going to pants me if I'm not careful. This_ _pokéball_ _feels like_ _a lead_ _weight, even miniaturized,_ he thought. However it wasn't long before the rumbling backdrop of the conversation caused by the weakened cavern soon reached a worrying degree. "Nido." The Nidorina vocalized, catching Alex's attention – it took him a few moments to place a hand on her in the dark, and then they were off..

 _What in the world am I going to do with an_ _Onix_ _?_ The thought punched its way through the thrill of winning the fight – he had never dreamed of wanting to capture or keep such a large and dangerous Pokemon as an Onix; _What's worse is this one in particular tried to kill me – twice. I really hope Ranger Jenny knows a place I can release this thing back into the wild where it won't cause trouble for anyone;_ _I hope I never have to see another Onix again in my life_ _!_ He thought to himself.

Thunder from behind Alex made both him and the Nidorina jump – a deafening rumble echoing up the tunnel began to reach them, and at first Alex froze, thinking something _else_ was pursuing them. " _Clefable! Clefable!"_ Their guide called somewhat urgently, and Alex readily picked up his pace to match the Nidorina, who proceeded forward more quickly than before. Although the rumble reached a crescendo of splitting, falling rock, they were far enough that the noise soon faded away to silence. _Man... W_ _e just avoided getting caught in a cave-in…_ Alex realized; although the notion was terrifying, he couldn't suppress feeling a subtle hint of bemusement at the thrill of cheating death again.

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There was an unmistakable difference in the atmosphere of the Clefairy within the central chamber, and it was palpable to Alex immediately; where before, the mysterious pink creatures hopped industriously about their business in grim silence, now they seemed to dance along, chanting as they went – illuminated by the moonlight pouring through the skylight in the central chamber, the large glimmering pile of stone shards at the heart of the open-air room that the Clefairy danced around seemed to glitter in the silvery rays of the moon; the creatures too almost seemed otherworldly to Alex, floating along as if they were unaffected by gravity.

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A flurry of chatter that Nidorina could hardly catch began almost immediately as a cluster of Clefairy broke away from the group dancing about the chamber, and crowded the Clefable returning with them from the battle, conversing in hurried and hushed whispers. "Never in all my years on this mountain did I ever think so many of these creatures lived right under our beaks." Featherbeak remarked. "It's been years since I've seen even one of them, in spite of all the time I've spent soaring above the mountain." He added.

The Nidorina lost track of the Clefable that had been their guide – there were several of them now, all conversing with each other quietly; one of them had something pressed into its hands by a Clefairy, and the Nidorina recognized it as one of the objects she'd seen the Clefairy carrying on the surface that had saved the human's life. It approached.

"Some Pokemon are born, live their entire lives, and die, without ever witnessing what lies beyond the slopes of this mountain – _our_ mountain. You will not be one of them. _"_ The Clefable carrying the object spoke, addressing the Nidorina while approaching the trio; something about the way it spoke instantly set it apart from the Clefable that had accompanied them to the battle with the Onix – something about it conveyed a bewildering sense of age that not even the first had seemed to possess; inwardly, the Nidorina felt herself wonder hard at just how long the mysterious creatures were capable of living.

" The two of you will depart with gifts from us – or rather payment in advance… Should we ever have need of your help." The Clefable spoke. "Your human has already more or less received his gift. In breathing life back into him, a side-effect of the Metronome our mountain-sister performed bestowed upon him an immunity to your poison. Unlike other humans, you won't have to worry about accidentally poisoning him to death ever again." It explained; the Nidorina's eyes widened.

" ... This is a shard of our central stone – the source from which all of our power is derived, because it is imbued with the spirit and essence of the moon, and this mountain so named after it. Your human will eventually figure out how to use it someday – when he does, you will from that moment on carry always a part of their spirit within you as we do, no matter how far away your wanderings may take you from this mountain and us." The Clefable said, giving the shard, which now on closer inspection appeared to be an ordinary piece of rock, to the human who squinted to see it in the dark. He vocalized his amusement, then petted the mysterious Clefable on the head and tousled its fur as he might a Growlithe; unperturbed, it maintained its timeless candor as it turned to stand by its comrades.

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Alex became dimly aware of a subtle change in the cave; at first he mistook it to be the light at the end of the tunnel – however, it took a minute more of scrabbling forward for him to actually spot the subtle change in light that marked the exit. "Hey, I think we–" He started to say to the Clefable, then trailed off; the Nidorina and Noctowl glanced around in equal bewilderment – the mysterious pink guide was nowhere to be found. _Well… Nevermind, I guess…_ Alex thought, sharing a glance with the two – and then whirling on the spot as a light glinted somewhere outside the mouth of the cave.

"...left a trail of yarn on the left side of the split junction I mentioned in the tunnel. I followed it to its end but didn't see anything; I'm going to try the right side this time–" Range Jenny said into her radio, then froze when Alex appeared at the entrance of the Onix tunnel. "Where were you?! I've been worried sick; the other rangers are on their way here to organize a search and rescue!" She scolded, until Alex grinned. "I got my Nidorina back. And _this_ ," He said, withdrawing the Pokeball in his pocket, "Belongs to _you_ now. I don't want it!" Alex deadpanned, handing the Onix to Ranger Jenny, who shined her flashlight on it and gaped at it.

"You… Defeated and captured that Onix? All by _yourself?_ " She demanded; Alex paused. "Well… We had help. And I didn't necessarily _capture_ it… My Nidorina seemed to calm it down – I don't know how… And, _it_ made _me_ take it in, just like she did!" Alex replied, hesitantly; Jenny frowned, apparently hardly able to believe him. "...And you're going to give it away – just like that – after it chose you?" She asked; Alex turned scarlet with embarrassment. "It tried to kill me!" He protested. "Yeah, but… Well, I don't suppose it matters now." Ranger Jenny shrugged, hefting the ball experimentally for a moment and then keying her radio. "Ranger Jenny to all Units: Stand down. Repeat, stand down; the missing person has…" She turned away, delivering orders and a report into the shoulder radio.

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"Ugh… I hope the Human stops soon. I'm exhausted…. I want to go to sleep." The Nidorina groaned to Featherbeak, glancing at the position of the moon in the sky; normally, she would have already been in her den long ago, snoring by this time. "Then do so." Featherbeak replied, as if the answer was obvious. "When?! _"_ The blue demanded. " _Right now, of course._ " Featherbeak responded, amused; the Nidorina scowled at him darkly, realizing he was teasing her.

"You and I both know he's just going to wake me up again here in a little bit if he decides not to stay here." The Nidorina responded, flatly. "No, because you have a pokéball now, remember? _"_ Featherbeak corrected, patiently. "It's a home away from home that's always right by his side. You could sleep the whole night away undisturbed in there and still never be out of reach from him." The old Noctowl reminded, smiling ironically at her with his eyes; Nidorina paused, opening her mouth several times to protest – Featherbeak's smug expression withered away any argument or protest the Nidorina could think of before she even spoke it.

Finally, she took a deep but shaky breath; perhaps out of tact, Featherbeak said nothing as the Nidorina stalked past him and focused his attention elsewhere. The blue glanced at the Noctowl reluctantly, but scratched at the human's side, fumbling to communicate what she wanted to the inexperienced trainer. Finally, in a red flash of light, she was gone a moment later – Featherbeak approached the human as well.

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"Well… It's bed-time for her, but _you're_ supposed to be waking up right about now." Alex muttered aloud to himself, regarding the old bird of prey for a moment as it approached, and squatting beside him. "Do you think he's tame enough to sit on my shoulder? Or my arm?" Alex asked Jenny in mild amusement, extending his arm in front of the Noctowl's feet – the bird regarded Alex's arm for only a moment, before looking up at him without moving.

"...I wouldn't try that if I were you – not unless you want his talons to dig into your flesh. You're gonna need a falconer's glove before you can carry him around like you're thinking. " The Ranger replied. "Remember: Pirates in movies and TV carry a Chatot around on their shoulders, not a Noctowl." Jenny said with amusement. "Crud… Right." Alex said, recalling the Noctowl a moment later with more than a little disappointment.

"Let's get back to the UTV; now that the Onix alert's been lifted, we're no longer required to be at our duty stations. I think Ranger Dixon was going to head to Viridian City before this whole mess started; you might be able to hitch a ride with him back to town now." Ranger Jenny explained; in spite of the fear, terror, and physical discomfort Alex had lived in over the past week, a keen loathing of letting the adventure end had begun to build within him. _...Or maybe it doesn't have to end just yet._ He thought to himself, as he began to imagine the possibilities of traveling the world with the Nidorina and Noctowl at his side.

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" _Oh my Goodness!_ " Ranger Jenny yelped in utter horror, and even Alex gasped sharply, flabbergasted past the point of being able to speak. The exterior building lights of the Ranger Station shined brightly through the darkness of the night, giving him the first good look at the Onix he'd had since… Well, _ever_ , he realized – he'd only glimpsed brief flashes of it in the cave at the peak, in the dark, or obscured in the haze created by the dust in the cavern where he'd captured it.

Metal jutted out at all angles from the rock that formed the Onix, where some deranged soul had lag-bolted plates, electronics, and other nefarious devices directly into to the unfortunate creature's back, body, and sides. Thick sheets of metal – perhaps some mad scientist's effort at armor plating – covered large sections of its body. Although the paint was scuffed and peeling, it was still visible; all of the pieces of equipment bore the same almost defiant symbol: _**R**_.

Tears clouded Alex's vision; he tried to will them away for a moment, and found he no longer needed to – Jenny let out a strangled cry that degraded into racking sobs. "Those… This filthy _Rockets!_ " She spat the word hatefully, as if it were the most vile curse imaginable; an explosive wave of anger bloomed inside Alex so powerful it made his hands shake and clench into fists – _everyone_ , even non-trainers like him – knew of the reputation of the wicked Team Rocket for horrendous experiments on Pokemon; this was undoubtedly the latest one.

The Onix regarded them very watchfully, evidently unsure of their motivations – tearfully, Alex strode forward, too numbed by the sight of the creature's pain to remember how he'd wanted to avoid ever seeing it again just an hour or two ago – the injuries undoubtedly must have been the reason it had tried to kill him; Alex belatedly realized the glint on its head caused by his flashlight in the cave at the peak was one of the many pieces of metal jutting out from its head.

"What… What did they _do_ to you?" He demanded helplessly in a broken voice – in spite of what must have been an unimaginable amount of pain and fear, the Onix evidently sensed some of his distraught sympathy, and allowed him to approach; as Alex's shaking hands touched its dusty, body, his vision melted completely away in a haze of watery eyes as he wrapped his arms as far around the massive serpent as he could... And squeezed. "We… We have to get him to a Pokemon center! _Immediately!_ " Alex gasped, once he was in control of his mental faculties; Jenny sniffed and sniveled, nodding and wiping her eyes – she too forced herself to concentrate, for the good of the Onix.

"Dixon… Dixon, come in." Ranger Jenny called shakily into her radio; her voice cracked more than once as she did so. "What?! What happened Jenny, are you okay!?" Dixon responded a moment later worriedly, alarmed by the strangled tone of Ranger Jenny's voice. "I'm... I'm not hurt, but… _Oh, it's horrible what they did to it!_ " She bawled, unable to resist breaking down again. "What!? What happened?! _Jenny_?!" Dixon demanded, almost frantic; Jenny held out the radio to Alex, unable to continue.

Alex cleared his throat, desperately hoping he might sound a little less pitiful for Jenny's sake. "You… You remember that Onix I captured earlier today? W-we just got our first good look at it in the light and we figured out why it's been going bonkers: Team Rocket made a complete mess out of its body, like something out of a mad scientist horror movie… I… I-I think even if we get it into a P-Pokemon center right way… They may have to end up putting it down." Alex said, shakily into the radio – several voices cut in and out as other rangers anxiously listening in on the conversation tried to express their outrage and concern.

"Hello? Is Jenny there?" Another voice – firm but sympathetic – cut in. "This is Ranger Haywood Marshall. Tell Jenny I'm on my way there; if there's any hope at all still left of saving that Onix, we've got to get it to the to the Trauma Center in Saffron City, immediately. I'll be there soon to see what we can do." Ranger Marshall replied; Jenny sniffed and wiped her face on her arm. "Tell him… Tell him copy that. Get that poor thing back inside its pokéball for now." Jenny said whimpered to Alex.

The sound of wings beating in the dark alerted Alex to the arrival of Ranger Haywood only a minute or two later; the Pidgeot whose back the Ranger rode, alighted beside them; Jenny quickly approached, handing him the Pokeball. "Where is it? Is it inside this Pokeball?" Marshall asked as he dismounted. "Yes," Jenny said, sniffling. "It is. You two have got to get going immediately, before it's too late." She said, startling Alex. "Wait, _me_? Why me?" He asked; although Ranger Haywood frowned, he remained silent as Jenny removed a Pokeball from her side and expanded it.

"You said this Onix trusted you – or your Pokemon – enough to follow you willingly. Whichever it is, it may lose that trust if we hand it over to someone it doesn't recognize. You need to go with it or it might flip out there in the medical center and start attacking everyone!" Ranger Jenny explained; evidently by his suddenly alarmed expression, the thought had not occurred to Ranger Haywood. "You can borrow Gale if you need a ride, but you've got to get going quickly! _Please!_ For it's sake!" Jenny urged; at that, she activated her Pokeball and a Fearow burst into existence beside the three of them.

The proud creature turned, casting a highly critical eye toward Alex and staring at him with obvious disdain. "Gale, behave. He needs your help, and so does the Onix that's with him; it's injured terribly. You pay attention to him as if he were me, okay? Haywood is going to be with you too, so there's no reason not to behave." Jenny sniffled softly, turning the creature gently by the beak to look her in the eye as she spoke to it; evidently it must have understood and had faith in her, for it was willing to obey; it relaxed and allowed Alex to approach as Jenny handed its pokéball to Ranger Haywood.

"I only hope we don't get there too late to help it; I'd feel terrible if it had to be put down after all!" Jenny moaned, trying not to break down again; although Gale squirmed uncomfortably under Alex, it did not shake him off as he settled in on its back. "Alright, Pidgeot, let's get going!" Ranger Haywood said; at once, the bird flapped its wings and took off, with Gale hot on its tale. Thrill and terror filled Alex as Gale's muscles flexed beneath him, powering him into the air; it had been the first time he'd ever flown in his life.

 _I really hope it doesn't change its mind and dump me off mid-flight!_ Alex's mind raced; he was careful not to clench too tightly onto the bird, lest he irritate it. Wind whipped in his face, and the sound of Gale's wings beating filled his ears – after only a few minutes, Alex realized he was thoroughly enjoying himself, despite not being able to see the ground in the darkness; _Actually, maybe that's a_ _good_ _thing_ _…_ Alex thought, realizing he'd also be able to see how high he was off the ground.

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Celadon city passed by off over in the distance; a bright line of hundreds of thousands of lights on the horizon directly ahead of Alex soon coalesced into individual distinguishable buildings, and before long, the first buildings of the outskirts of Saffron city flitted by underneath them. Now with lights to illuminate the night, Alex marveled at the sights of the city and flashing by; it seemed as though he were staring at a model of a city, complete with moving miniature pea-sized cars on finger-sized roadways – Ranger Haywood banked sharply, and Alex gasped sharply as Gale mimicked the maneuver expertly, following the Pidgeot right between the first of the large skyscrapers that marked the downtown area.

Heart thudding like a machine gun, Alex hooted in surprise as they rounded a street corner sharply, blowing right past the a large commerce building and encountering a street banner spanning two skyscrapers suddenly – Alex psyducked for for cover behind Gale's neck, certain they would crash into as it loomed before them just a second away. Reacting with keen reflexes, Haywood's Pidgeot swooped under it with ease, while Gale, who was directly in line to hit it, neatly pulled a tight looping roll right up and over the barrier, inverting Alex for just a single breath-taking moment.

Fearful giddiness bubbled up in him at the sight of the ground _above_ him for just an instant; Gale righted itself an instant later before gravity could pull Alex from its back. To his disappointment though, they were soon bleeding off speed as Haywood oriented them in the direction of a trio of white-clad skyscrapers, all brightly illuminated by spotlights in the large shared frontlawn before them. A large sapphire cross prominently emblazoned on the front of the largest center hospital building captured Alex's attention for a moment – however, activity on the lawn below pried his eyes off of it.

A small gaggle of uniformed personnel and their Pokemon all gathered around an empty concrete slab that Alex realized must have been for the use of airborne traffic – Haywood steered his Pidgeot to it, and a moment later both it and Gale back-winged into a graceful landing atop the slab. "We received a call via CB radio to prepare for an incoming Onix that's been severely injured by Team Rocket... Are you the trainer sent to deliver it?" A woman in scrubs asked, the moment Alex dismounted from the Fearow.

"Oh! Nurse Joy! Yes, it's right here – do you want me to let it out?" Alex asked. "Yes, please; we need to see what the extent is of the damage that was done to it." She ordered; taking a breath to steady his own nerves now that he knew what to expect, Alex released the serpent from its ball. A chorus of startled conversation, strangled gasps, whimpers, and a particularly fervent curse from Ranger Haywood greeted the arrival of the severely injured Onix, as the others caught their first glimpses of the tortured animal.

The sudden appearance of spot lights, scrubs, Pokemon, and buildings were overwhelming – the Onix reacted poorly to the all-too-familiar surroundings. "Hey! I think it's reverting back to being dangerous again; clear out!" Haywood barked, shoving his way past a terrified Chansey to the forefront of the collection; Haywood's Pidgeot, hopping from foot to foot and with its wings spread in agitation skipped to the front with him, ready to confront the threat. "No!" Alex cried, sprinting to stand before the Onix with his back turned to it – the rock serpent froze, the tip of its tail poised to crush him flat.

"Wait! You're freaking it out; let me try and calm it down!" Alex sad, holding his arms up to forestall any further activity. _Actually…_ He thought helplessly after a moment, _L_ _et me let my_ _p_ _okemon_ _try and calm it down;_ _they're_ _the ones that did it in the first place!_ Alex thought, rooting around in the pocket he now carried their pokéballs in. His heart caught in his throat as he turned around, totally unaware until that point how closely he had come to getting squashed like a bug; the Onix still remained tense – in spite of its great size and power, Alex registered genuine fear in its eyes as it shied away from the Nurses in their hauntingly familiar garb.

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Reality exploded into being around Nidorina; she snorted awake. "Hey…! Featherbeak, I thought you said the human wouldn't–" The Nidorina froze; in all her life, she'd never experienced the perfect flatness of a concrete slab underfoot – her eyes popped open, and she beheld the trembling Onix right before her with a gasp. Far more importantly than that, there were humans around – more than any she'd ever seen – and a supernova of different sights, sounds, and smells greeted the mountain dwelling Nidorina.

"Ah. Good, you're awake. You've missed out on a lot." Featherbeak remarked dryly, glancing at the Nidorina; evidently he had been awake and listening to the commotion from inside his pokeball. "What's going on!? I thought you said this human would help me!" The Onix demanded of the Nidorina, infuriated. "I did, but, _I don't even know what's going on!_ " The Nidorina yelped; the Onix's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Stop!" Featherbeak ordered, suddenly.

"Wait." He said, pausing to take in their surroundings – of note, were the human females huddled breathlessly with their Chanseys, and the large blue cross prominently shining at the top of a human-made mountain nearby. "I don't believe I've ever been here – wherever 'here' is – but I do recognize these human females and their Pokemon. They are here to help you – they help anyone and anything that is hurt." The elderly owl announced to the Onix, with rapidly increasing certainty. "How do I know!? The humans that did this to me – they may have looked slightly different, but they smelled the same and had the same color skin!" It snarled, referring to the scrubs these particular nurses wore.

Featherbeak clicked his beak and puffed out his feathers impatiently when he realized why the Nidorina had not joined the conversation; her wandering attention span completely removed any and all ability to focus on it as she gawked at their surroundings. "The humans you're referring to are called 'Rockets' by other humans. It–" Featherbeak began to explain, until his response was cut short by the quiet approach of a Blissey; the pink pokemon held before her the egg from her now-empty pouch.

"...Excuse me. We… We can't help you if you won't let us, and if you mean to attack us, then we won't try. But before you go, at least eat this. It will make you feel a little better." The Blissey's soprano voice, bright and clear, reflected the concern etched in her face; the Onix glanced very hesitantly at the egg, and the Blissey. "I feel terrible and I'm not hungry; in any case, I'm no egg-smashing predator!" The Onix huffed, irritably.

"I am offering it to you – please, accept it. When was the last time you ate anything? You look terrible." The Blissey continued, undeterred; a thought occurred to Featherbeak. "In all the years I was subjugated by one of them, I never once saw the Rockets ever use Chanseys to heal their captives. Did the humans that did this to you have Chanseys? And if they did, did they allow those them to tend to you?" Featherbeak asked; the Onix fell silent.

"There were a few but… No, they were not allowed to treat me. They weren't allowed to touch anyone. They were prisoners too." The seprent trailed off, pausing to think. "...They were treated just as terribly as I was... One of them broke free of the cage where they were kept, in her desperation to help me – she was _very_ severely punished for disobeying them." The Onix said, with a great, shuddering sigh of grief.

The Onix studied the humans all still shifting weight anxiously from foot to foot – encouraged by the Blissey's example, and evidently unable to help their urge to help the Onix, the Chanseys had begun to creep closer too, cautiously. "This egg is just an egg – there's no life within. It won't harm anyone or anything – least of all me – if you ate it, and it will help your appetite; I promise. If you don't like it, you may spit it out." The Blissey said, waving the egg once enticingly.

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Alex had retreated away slightly, but still stood ready to recall the Noctowl and Featherbeak should the Onix turn violent – he glanced at Ranger Haywood, quietly conversing with Nurse Joy; he shrugged helplessly, but she motioned him over. Only very reluctantly did Alex leave his two Pokémon before the Onix, which had at least for the time-being eased its posture, which was dangerous like a cobra.

"Do you think it's safe to let Blissey near that Onix?" Nurse Joy asked nervously; Alex spotted a radio in her hand as well – glancing around, he realized security details from all three buildings stood watchfully waiting for any sign of trouble… If the Onix did attack, they would descend upon it and the fight that would surely follow, would end its misery permanently; the notion made Alex swallow. "I… I don't know. I don't imagine it trusts us; it attacked me on sight the very first time I saw it, but… It doesn't _look_ as tense as it did before." Alex said helplessly.

The Blissey offered the egg again enticingly, speaking to the Onix soothingly. "Is… Is she trying to get the Onix to _eat_ her egg?!" Alex demanded in horrified revulsion. "Yes, actually. They're extremely nutritious and that one's not fertile, so it's more like eating an ordinary hard boiled egg." Joy remarked, distractedly; the Onix paused, evidently intrigued by the offer in spite of its initial hesitation – everyone's breath held for a moment; seeing Alex's confusion and inexperience, Joy spoke again.

"Even the sickest of creatures will gobble up a whole Blissey egg if they so much as taste even one bite of it; they're extraordinarily delicious, highly nutritious, and help injured Pokémon heal. If she can get him to eat it, he might relax – then we can hurry up and get this show on the road; with other patients possibly needing us, that Onix has kept us standing here longer than I'd like. We don't have all evening." Joy remarked, frowning slightly.

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"Featherbeak…!" Nidorina mumbled hesitantly. "Not now – there'll be time for discussion about humans later." The Noctowl dismissed her impatiently. "No, no, that's not it." Nidorina said, distractedly, finally trying to focus on present events, by speaking up.

"I… I stand by Featherbeak's decision that the human we follow is good, as I told you he was back in the cave. If he brought you here, he must be extremely concerned about you – and… And if this turns out to be a trick, then you have my permission to squash him. That's how strongly I believe he is good." Nidorina declared; the Onix let out a shaky exhale, slackening its tense posture so that its head hung tiredly.

"I… I don't want to hurt _anyone_ …. I only want the pain to _stop_." It moaned, miserable. "You said you haven't been able to sleep. Would you object to Featherbeak putting you to sleep like he almost did in the cave? The rest might do you some good." The Nidorina asked hopefully. "Food and sleep will help you recover – this snack would be a great place to start." The Blissey offered again; too tired to argue anymore, the Onix approached, sniffing hesitantly. "What do you have to lose at this point? You were ready to fight me to the bitter end earlier. You have _hope_ now." The Nidorina prodded.

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Evidently, deciding the egg smelled better than it thought, the Onix very reluctantly took a tiny bite… And then carefully nipped the whole thing in its mouth and then chomped it down whole. "H-hey, what's happening? What's it doing?" Ranger Haywood asked nervously, seeing the Onix's head begin to sway rhythmically.

"...I-its my Noctowl…. I think it's putting him to sleep again..." Alex mumbled; Nurse Joy brightened immediately at that. "That's a terrific idea!" She said, keying her radio. "Nurse Joy to control: We might finally have gotten the Onix to settle down by using Hypnosis. If it works, get the anesthesiology team ready to get out here to sedate the thing before we do anything else, so that if it settles down, it _stays_ settled down!" She declared in consternation.

The Onix's head drifted to the ground; it did not seem to want to fight the Noctowl's power of suggestion to rest. A moment later its chin touched down on the concrete, and it began dozing fitfully on its side; at once, a flurry of activity began – visibly upset at the poor creature's condition but still keeping a professional demeanor, Nurse Joy immediately set to assessing the extent of the Onix's injuries.

As she did so, the Ranger stepped back, eventually approaching Alex after a moment. "...I gotta say, that's one hell of a team you've got there, kid." Haywood remarked, and Alex breathed for what seemed like the first time in forever. "Thank you, but… I didn't have anything to do with their upbringing. In fact, I only _officially_ caught them both yesterday afternoon." Alex remarked; Haywood shot him an utterly incredulous look, only shaking his head for a moment.

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Featherbeak watched in amusement from his perch on the Nidorina's back as she paced like a caged animal, too unsettled by the events with the Onix and sights and sounds of the city to even think about going back to sleep; in just minutes she'd already seen more humans than she imagined even existed in the whole of the world – and a never ending parade of new and unusual Pokemon she'd never dreamed could exist.

A rather laconic Hitmonchan with its arm in a splint met and held the Nidorina's stare for a moment as it approached. "Fresh capture?" It observed dryly, glancing at Featherbeak, who riding comfortably atop her back; churring heavily with amusement, Featherbeak nodded. "Fresh capture." He confirmed in amusement as the Hitmonchan filed past with its own trainer, leaving Nidorina to stare at it helplessly. "Featherbeak… That Pokemon looked like a _human!_ " She breathed plaintively, referring to the Hitmonchan.

"It did. I'm waiting to see if I'll be so fortunate as to watch you encounter your first Muk; believe me, with your sensitive nose, it will leave a lasting impression on you." Featherbeak said, erupting in fresh round of laughter – at least until their human arrived with another Nurse in tow; she bent down low and studied Featherbeak for several moments, pointing at his injured wing. The two exchanged human-yammer at each other for a moment, and then a Chansey arrived bearing some sort of extremely thick human paw-shaped object that the Nurse slipped over her own spindly fore-paw, and held it in front of Featherbeak.

Apparently recognizing it for what it was, the old bird hopped on eagerly, and separation anxiety flooded the Nidorina's system the moment the human stood, obviously intending to carry Featherbeak away. "Wait! What is she doing?! Where are you going!?" Nidorina demanded fearfully, jumping to her feet. "Don't worry about me – I'll be fine. Do not give these humans any trouble; I suspect they're going to try to heal my wing. It's been too long since I visited a place like this; I can hardly wait." Featherbeak said, plainly happy to go with the stranger; at that, the human female disappeared behind two flat rectangular objects, and the old Noctowl was gone from sight.

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Sensing her clear nervousness, Alex bent low and began stroking the Nidorina reassuringly; he scratched behind her ears gently, which served to distract the blue momentarily as she could do nothing but watched this strange new and utterly alien world go by, except this time without Featherbeak to draw reassurances from. "Well, I've got to hand it to you; your two Pokemon came in pretty handy out there talking down that Onix. Jenny made it sound like you were in real danger of getting hurt when you went after it alone." Ranger Haywood remarked, approaching and catching Alex's attention as he too paused to scratch the Nidorina's cheek softly.

"She wasn't wrong." Alex admitted, hesitantly. "Being out on my own for the first time's been an eye-opening experience, but… I had no idea how much fun I was missing – I think I _may_ actually give this training thing a shot." Alex remarked; Haywood grinned for a moment, before speaking. "I... Think we should go see about getting in contact with Jenny, and figure out what our next course of action's going to be. What do you say?" Haywood remarked; Alex nodded and got to his feet.

Sticking to him like a giant blue shadow, scarlet eyes darting to and fro watchfully, the Nidorina followed Alex somewhat nervously as they made their way down the halls of the hospital to a row of courtesy video-phones in the lobby. Only a few moments later, Ranger Jenny's face – dispirited and puffy-faced, evidently from crying – appeared on screen; she perked up immediately, brushing a bang behind her face and stooping over the monitor. "Are you two there already? What happened? Have you heard any news about the Onix?!" Jenny asked immediately, blurting out questions pell-mell.

"We're here, but… It's a damn good thing – a _damn_ good thing – you insisted this kiddo go along after all. There was almost a fight on the front lawn of the trauma center; that Onix started to go nuts, but his team and him managed to calm it down peacefully again." Dixon said; Jenny's face drained of color, until Dixon mentioned the Onix was safe and sound.

"...You know how hospitals are – I don't know if we're going to find out anything meaningful about that Onix's condition until," He remarked, glancing at his watch, "Well, probably late this morning at the earliest. All we can do is keep our fingers crossed until then." Haywood explained; Alex's eyes widened slightly – he hadn't realized amid all the excitement that it had already gotten so late as to already officially be the next morning.

"Well, that's a relief." Jenny breathed, sitting down and rubbing her face with her hands for a moment exhaustedly. "I… I-I'm sorry I went to pieces earlier like that, Alex, I… I just can't stand the thought of what that poor Onix has been through. I'm really glad you both made it already." She remarked, wiping an eye. "It's… It's not a problem. It tore me up too." Alex murmured awkwardly.

The boy sighed, turning scarlet. "I… Really hope they're able to save that Onix. I know it sounds terrible to say it, but... With my allowance being what it is, and only basic health care at most Pokémon centers being free of charge, I don't know how I'll ever be able afford the cost of a stay in the ICU, and still having to put the poor creature down in the end." Alex remarked; Ranger Dixon winced in sympathy, but Ranger Jenny smiled folornly.

"...Don't worry about that, kiddo. I may be a forest ranger, but I'm still an officer of the law with the full authority to arrest or take into custody any and all sentient and non-sentient troublemakers and law-breakers, including that Onix… And, as I recall, you turned it over to the care of the state when you gave it to me there at the entrance of the tunnel." Jenny sniffed.

"Hmmm…" Dixon scratched his chin for a moment. "…That would mean the state's responsible for the Onix's care until it's either re-homed or rehabilitated. Clever girl." Haywood remarked with amusement; Alex winced. "Cost or no cost, I just hope the poor thing gets better." He said, sadly; Alex could hardly fault the creature, now that he realized its terrible injuries had probably driven it mad.

"Well, by getting it here as quickly as we could, we've done all that we can; the rest is up to the Trauma center staff. I'm going to see if the hospital staff are ready to let him go, or if they want him to stick around just to be safe, in case they plan on waking it up any time soon." Dixon said, referring to Alex. "In either case I'll be along in about an hour – there's nothing more I personally can do here." Haywood said.

"...I guess I'll be sticking around no matter what. They took my Noctowl in to check on his broken wing and I don't know when they'll release him." Alex said, absently. "That's good. In that case, thanks for the update. G'night guys." Jenny said, slumping back in her chair heavily; a moment later, the connection went dead.

Alex stood and stretched; with the excitement well and truly over, exhaustion was beginning to set in. "...Since you're technically here in an official capacity, I'll arrange to have you taken home once the hospital staff are sure that Onix can remain under control without you." Haywood said, standing as well. "Here's the number to the ranger station – let us know what the nurses say. And for what it's worth, survive or not… You did a good thing in bringing that Onix in. Anyone that's willing to put themselves at risk even for a wild Pokemon like that one is okay in my book. Put 'er there." Haywood complimented, extending a hand that Alex shook.

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"Wha––!" Alex yelped as he was toppled rather brusquely from the ottoman serving as his "bed" in the waiting room of the hospital; it was the second of perhaps many future times the Nidorina would awaken him so unceremoniously. "Oh my!" Nurse Joy remarked in amusement, as Alex scrambled up off the floor. "She certainly seems to know how to wake you up. I hardly had to say anything at all!" Nurse Joy said with a grin; groggily, Alex stood – the Nidorina quietly stole his spot on the ottoman, preoccupying herself with the wonder that was a soft cushion. "I think she misses the Noctowl. They're practically inseparable." Alex mumbled sleepily, rubbing his eyes and checking the clock on the wall – 7:03 AM.

"Speaking of him: we have good news, and a little bit of bad news." Joy remarked; Alex studied her face anxiously for a moment, but was relieved to find little real concern there. "The bad news is regarding the Onix." Jenny began. "The injuries to its body were pretty extensive. It already "healed" more or less around the implants the Rockets tried to graft onto it; unfortunately, that mans we'll have to remove all that junk from its body, and when we do, it'll essentially make all the implant wounds fresh again." Joy remarked, unhappily.

"I truly wish there was a better way than having to surgically remove everything. The Onix will have to essentially start the healing process all over again from scratch. The doctors say that he is a fighter though, with a strong immune system – he already survived the implantation process and started to heal again despite being on his own. They think he will pull through in the end once he's free of their cursed machinery." Joy announced; Alex went slack with relief, resting his head against Nidorina's side. "That's excellent – truly wonderful. Jenny will be thrilled." Alex said, cracking an exhausted but genuine smile.

"We did the best we could for your Noctowl, but, unfortunately there's not a lot we _can_ do for him – he's very old, and in relatively poor health." Joy said – Alex felt a bolt of cold fear lance through him, but fortunately, Jenny did not seem particularly unhappy. "With a good diet of Poke-chow and a quiet life away from much strenuous activity, I think he still has a good several years left of life in him. He'll fly again, but not very strongly; I probably don't need to tell you his battling days are officially over." She said; Alex blew another sigh of relief.

"I must say, if this Noctowl a recent capture, you've probably saved his life – I don't know that he would have lived much longer in his condition in the wild." Nurse Joy said; Alex accepted this information as stoically as he could, but the idea that the old creature might only be around for a few more years even in captivity was tragic at best. "We'll return him to you hopefully within the next few hours. The wing is healing about as well can be expected; we'll give you a prescription for a multi-vitamin to begin feeding him regularly that will help the bones mend, and generally help keep his health up." Joy explained.

"Thank you for everything you've done. We'll both be more than happy to see him again." Alex said, turning to scratch the Nidorina once – she inhaled and exhaled deeply, likely completely oblivious to their goings-on; nevertheless, she leaned into his scratch – Alex didn't need to words to understand she was beginning to warm to the concept of regular attention.

"The doctors don't think it'll be necessary for you to remain here after all – we plan to keep the Onix sedated for the time-being, and medicated for pain afterwards so that he doesn't hurt excessively." Joy replied; Alex blew a breath of relief ironically; it was good news and bad news at the same time: _Well… I_ _may not have to face_ _an angry_ _Onix again, but, I've still got mom and dad to deal with…_ _And after disappearing like this for this long, I'_ _d have rather taken_ _my chances with the Onix!_ Alex thought.


	9. Chapter 9

It was early morning; Alex spotted his mother watering the front lawn of the house from the end of the block; although he still dreaded her reaction to his now being a week overdue from his excursion, he still loved her dearly. _There were a lot of really dicey times I thought I'd never see this place again,_ Alex thought, looking at her and of his comfortingly familiar neighborhood. Alex's mother turned to unwind the garden hose with a flick as he walked up the driveway and she spotted him, bristling.

" _Ale_ _jandro_ _Quintanilla_ _Gonzalez_ _Serrano_ ," Alex's mother Cassandra seethed – Alex froze, realizing that the use of his full name meant certain doom; reflexively, he gulped. "Where in the _wide_ world have you been?! Your father and I were worried sick; almost two weeks and only _one_ phone call from a Ranger in all that time; why, I–!" In her anger, she tossed the running hose in the grass; however, before she could get any near to him than she already had, Alex eyes narrowed to pinpricks, this time from a different fear altogether: A pokeball in his pocket expanded.

Seeing a look of terror cross his face Cassandra froze – it was all Alex could do but scramble to yank the pokeball free of his pocket in time to prevent it from blowing his pants off the moment it opened. With a flash of red energy, the blue Nidorina burst into creation between them, tense at the perceived threat his mother posed, and watching for any sign of hostility. Alex's mother gasped in shock, and stopped in her tracks at the unexpected appearance of the pokemon – really, _any_ pokemon.

"What the…?" Cassandra trailed off in disbelief, as the Nidorina advanced a step toward her, growling a warning at the hitherto unfamiliar human. "No, no!" Alex squealed. "Wait! It's okay! Down girl! She's a mother, not an enemy!" Alex cried out, scrambling to soothe the Nidorina by clutching onto and trying to hold or pull the blue back, terrified for his mother's safety.

"...W-Where in the world did you find _her_? I thought you were going to Mount Moon?" Alex's mother breathed in disbelief, momentarily too bewildered to remember the desire to wring his neck. "I did – she was there. I don't know why, but she started following me around, and I didn't have the heart to turn her away after all we'd been through up there!" Alex said, completely omitting any mention of the numerous near-death experiences, danger, and other mishaps that had befallen him while there.

"But… Nidorina aren't native to Mt. Moon! Are you sure you captured her _there_?" Cassandra asked, eyes fluttering in surprise. "...Maybe?" Alex shrugged, hesitantly – he still wasn't entirely sure, either. "It was more of _her_ deciding she was going to come with me. I thought Ranger Jenny was going to make me leave her behind, but she accepted a Pokeball at the last minute. You're not going to make me get rid of her, are you?" Alex asked, sudden dread beginning to clutch his heart; his mother's approval – or lack thereof – of a large, spiny, poisonous, and only recently captured pokemon as a house pet had escaped his thoughts until now.

"W-what?! No…" Cassandra said shakily, wiping her hand over her head in bewilderment. "I just… I didn't honestly expect you to bring anything home, is all – you seemed set on capturing an Absol and an Absol only, which are already pretty rare around Kanto… Your father and I didn't _actually_ think you'd find one or capture anything out there even as long as you were gone." She remarked; Alex paused, unsure of whether to take the statement as an insult or not. "Anyway, that's not so much my concern – how on Earth are you going to get her to behave? You don't even know the first thing about training, son"!" She said, tossing a hand at the Nidorina, who still relaxed slightly, evidently sensing some manner of familiarity between her and Alex.

Alex rolled his eyes. "Oh jeez! Well, it's a shame I don't have a mother who used to be a fairly serious trainer back in her younger days to give me even a little advice!" He deadpanned sarcastically; she narrowed her eyes at him, glowering. " _ **Hey**_. I've got no problems teaching you a thing or two about raising her – _my_ primary concern is that you picked an extremely dangerous 'first' pokemon to train; Nidorina are extremely venomous. If she pricks once – you even on accident – you could be in serious trouble!" She clarified, crossing her arms.

Alex fell deliberately and conspicuously silent for a long while, rubbing his hand on his neck and clearing his throat. "She already _stabbed you?_ And you still kept her around?!" Cassandra wailed in horror. "Has the venom gotten to your head, or did you forget to pack common sense before you left!?" She demanded. "Look, it was only a few minor pricks here and there mom, and I'm completely alright now besides." Alex said, though his spine tingled with the memory of the first stabbing he'd gotten in the nose.

"Anyway, you're blowing this totally out of proportion; I hardly even feel anything anymore; just look at her. Who couldn't love a face like this?! She's adorable!" Alex demanded, squatting next to Nidorina and hugging her protectively; evidently deciding that his mother didn't pose as much of a threat after all, the Nidorina relaxed some more… And only then did his mother do so too.

Cassandra pressed a hand to her forehead, then drew it back over her head in, blowing a breath out and pausing to stare at the blue. "….If she makes a mess on the carpet, you're cleaning it out." Alex's mother remarked after a moment as the thought occurred to her; Alex bit his lip. "...No problem. That's fair." He said, almost immediately. "...You better take good care of her from now on too – regular Poke-center checkups, walks, the whole nine yards–" She said, then paused, falling silent for a moment and studying the Nidorina. The two females locked eyes – Alex fell silent, the hair on his neck standing up for a moment as the two began to stare each other down.

For a moment, there was only silence and the trickle of the hose – the two watched each other, and Alex felt his heart rate spike. However, he reminded himself that his mother had been a trainer; with little recourse, Alex could only put faith in her abilities, and to his surprise after a moment, she stared the Nidorina down, showing an aura of confidence that made the blue's ears slowly lower a little – the Pokémon shifted slightly; it was the same way Featherbeak had looked at her whenever he reprimanded misbehavior and insisted on disobedience when she was still a pup.

"Come here." His mother ordered evenly under her breath, maintaining eye contact with the Nidorina and making a gesturing once for the creature to step forward – the blue hesitated for a moment… Then cautiously approached, padding over quietly, and accepted a very brief scratch behind the ear; Alex watched in amazement. "...That's… That's amazing. How in the world did you get her to come to you just like that? It took me forever to figure out how to get her to come to me on command, and even then she only ever responds when I called out to her." Alex asked, bewildered.

"You have to know how to "talk" to pokemon, son. They – particularly the wild ones – don't understand the majority of what humans say at first, but they pick up on gestures and body language quickly." Cassandra explained, kneeling and studying the Nidorina's numerous spines with a practiced eye; Alex sighed in disgust. "It would be so much simpler to be able to just talk with them without having to become 'The Nidorina Whisperer' like you." He said, chewing on the inside of his cheek; his mother glanced up at him incredulously.

"You're kidding, right?" She asked – Alex was silent. "...All this time and you never realized Pokeballs can translate basic human speech to thoughts they can understand?" Cassandra demanded in increasing disbelief; Alex's palm hit his face, and his brown skin flushed scarlet once she began laughing. "...Well don't feel bad; everybody's gotta start somewhere I guess. I got about as far as earning my Marsh badge before I stopped training regularly," She replied proudly, petting the Nidorina carefully once more, avoid the spines, "I've got plenty of things to teach you if you want."

"Well… I already seriously regret not having you along. You won't believe the time I had out there – have I got stories to tell _you!_ " Alex breathed, getting tired just thinking about the whole ordeal; she shot a terse look at him, and stood. "I'll admit that this Nidorina may be cute, but you're still not off the hook yet, buster. I've been worried sick; I was already getting ready to go looking for you myself until that nice forest ranger on the mountain called me and told me you were at least alive and okay. What in the world happened up there?" She asked, sternly.

"Well, actually, hang on… I have more than one new friend for you to meet first. This Nidorina seemed very attached to him; in fact, she wouldn't leave him behind." Alex said, expanding his second Pokeball. "Hey," He said gently to the ball, testing her first tidbit of advice – sure enough, the sleeping Noctowl within stirred awake. "Hey, wake up; it's time for you to meet my family!" Alex said to the bird, which turned its attention to him.

The ball opened, and with a flash the Noctowl materialized on the concrete of the driveway before Alex. Alex's mother gasped so sharply Alex was startled into almost dropping the empty ball; immediately, the ancient bird's head swivelled in her direction – and his feathers shrank against him. "F…" She tried to speak, clutching her hand to her mouth. "F-featherb-beak… Is that you?" She whispered tightly; her legs seemed to gave out as she tried to take a step forward, and she sank to the concrete. Letting out a strangled cry, Featherbeak skip-fluttered hurriedly across the driveway, ignoring the pain in his broken wing in his rush to greet his first and most precious former trainer.

Now, it was Alex's turn to stare in utter disbelief. "Wait… You _know_ this Noctowl!? _This_ particular Noctowl!?" He demanded as the battered old avian scrambled into her arms, nuzzling her in adoration, exactly as if she were a long lost friend. No reply came from his mother; she couldn't speak past the tears or sobs of joy…. And sorrow. "What _happened to you,_ _you poor thing_ _!?_ " She wailed in grief, seeing the condition the old Noctowl was in.

"I-I didn't do it; he was like that when I found him!" Alex protested immediately; the Nidorina's spines raised not in anger, but in equal and complete shock – she turned to regard Alex, evidently as utterly lost as he was. "Oh dear heavens… Who did this to you? Huh, who did this to you, sweet pea?!" Cassandra gasped, still racked with powerful sobs; Featherbeak seemed to respond with his own taught-voiced vocalizations, and for a moment Alex wondered how much spoken word the owl understood.

Unable to get anything more out of her, Alex paused, making his way over and sitting beside her on the concrete – Nidorina approached and lay her head in his lap. "I… I can't believe it's really him. After all these _years_ …!" She whimpered, trying to keep from causing any discomfort to the withered old being by hugging him tightly; her lip trembled as she studied his thoroughly bedraggled form.

"You never told me you had a Noctowl before!" Alex remarked, once she had cried her way past the initial shock of reuniting with him – his drooping gray crest seemed to perk up slightly even as Cassandra ran a hand over it. "...You never asked. Why, you never even showed any interest in training until now!" His mother remarked, wiping her eyes. "Oh… He didn't at _all_ look like this when I released him back into the wild; some heartless monster must have captured him again and abused him _terribly!_ " She cried, falling back into wracking sobs again.

"Why did you let him go if you loved him so much?" Alex asked, dumbsfounded. "Your father and I were worried about how he might behave around something small and defenseless like you as an infant – he is a bird of prey after all, and I was already pregnant with you. What's more, I was never going to have the time to raise you and properly take care of him at the same time – I hoped he'd have gone back to a relatively happy lifestyle when I released him into the forests of Mt. Moon; if I had known he would wind up like _this_ , I'd have NEVER let him out of my sight!" She moaned, wracked with utter, crushing guilt.

"Don't take it so hard – look, you're freaking him out. He doesn't seem to hold it against you; he's so happy to see you again." Alex urged; Featherbeak chattered excitedly, draping his good wing around her. "He… He still remembers how to hug!" She bawled; it brought a tear to Alex's eye, and Nidorina did not protest when he wrapped an arm tightly around her for comfort.

Again, it took time for Cassandra to get a grip on herself; she paid no heed at all to the bloody scratches on her legs where Featherbeak's talons accidentally nicked her, as she hugged him again. "Oh, my old friend… My poor old Featherbeak…" She whimpered again, sounding different altogether with her nose as plugged as it was. Alex wiped his eyes, and grinned broadly. "So, uhhh… Does this mean we get to keep him too?" He asked, bringing a bright if still tearful smile to her face. "I-I'm sorry… It's just that he was my everything. I… I just wasn't prepared to see him in this condition. Thank you for bringing him back home – I'll never let him go again as long as he lives." She said, hugging him again.

"It's a cute name, but why did you nickname him Featherbeak?" Alex asked. "He liked to preen a lot; still does – see? So, I called him Featherbeak." She explained, running a finger over his head gently. "Well…" Alex said, "...He rightfully belongs to you then. After the kind of life he looks like he's had, some easy days ahead here around the house look like just the thing he needs." Alex remarked; momentarily she set Featherbeak down to deliver a crushing hug to Alex, and a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you, thank you, _thank you,_ son… I can't even begin to thank you enough….! Goodness, I just remembered: I stored all his old things away in the attic and I'm pretty sure they're still there. C'mon! Let's go find and dust off your old perch, Featherbeak!" She practically cheered, gently hugging him to her chest and scrambling inside the house. Alex flopped back on the concrete, staring at the blue sky – his head spun for a few moments. "You stabbed me again." He remarked absently to the Nidorina, whose head still sat in his lap; "Nido." She replied blankly, sitting up and staring at the door his mother had disappeared into, with Featherbeak.

"Hold on – mom left the hose running. Let me shut it off and then I can show you around your new home, girl." Alex said to the Nidorina, sitting up suddenly and noting that water had begun to run off the driveway and several houses down the street. Eagerly, he held open the front door – Nidorina approached hesitantly, her stubby nose working as she sniffed all the new scents of the house and its interior.

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"Featherbeak, is that female the human I think she is?" Nidorina finally asked, when all the commotion settled down – a third human, an older male, had wandered in later in the day, and now seemed to be fascinated by whatever her human was babbling on about. "Yes, she is… My first trainer. The one I've told you about once or twice before." Featherbeak said exhausted, but still too thrilled to sleep.

"They all look the same – they are the color of tree bark. Could they be a family group?" She asked. "Undoubtedly. Which means there can be no doubt about it – you'll be just fine with your new human, if he's even remotely like mine." Featherbeak gushed; at this, Nidorina could finally relax – well and _truly_ relax; Featherbeak had never been wrong before, and this stroke of sheer providence was the final nail in the coffin of her doubts about the young human male.

"...What happens now?" She asked, glancing around the box-like cave-den the humans evidently lived in. "I can't say for sure, really. My traveling days are far behind me, but yours might soon begin – it's up to the human. I suspect either way though, they'll begin working with you – teaching you what's expected of you. For example, they don't like it when you relieve yourself inside." Featherbeak remarked in amusement.

"Going wherever I wanted was never a problem before!" Nidorina grunted, stuffily. "Maybe not, but a few changes in behavior are a small price to pay for the luxury of human life. Do you feel the summer heat in here?" Featherbeak asked. Nidorina blinked, raising her head. "Actually… No, it feels cool – like the time of year when the leaves turn colors and fall off the trees." The blue observed remarked. "It will be like that year round. And droughts no longer mean you risk starvation, or dying of thirst in the heat. They have this truly wonderful invention–" The longer Featherbeak spoke, the more Nidorina felt herself begin to hang fascinated on his every word.

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"How do you feel? You look much better than I remember." Nidorina asked the Onix weeks later; the beast was covered from head to tail in fresh scars that no longer needed bandages to continue healing. "I can't even begin to describe the relief. There is still some pain, but, every day it goes away a little more. I suppose I won't have to squash your human after all." The Onix replied; Nidorina shifted nervously at the total lack of sarcasm in his tone – she had begun to grow exponentially more fond of him in the intervening weeks since they had last visited this place.

"Where is the Noctowl that was with you?" The Serpent asked, its large eyes sweeping the room. "Home." Nidorina said, eager to flash the new word Featherbeak had taught her that referred to the box-like den the humans lived in. "Home, with his trainer – a very kind female human that seems to be my human-Alex's mother." She replied; human-Alex conversed quietly with the Nurse-human and the ranger-humans from before.

"….Thank him for convincing me to give these humans a chance to undo the damage the ones did from before. I do not like knowing that I might have hurt them in my madness without him there to stop me." The Onix replied, beginning to sway side to side gently, this time out of relaxed contentment, rather than agitation. "What will happen to me now?" The Onix asked, after only a moment of watching the humans interact – the Ranger-human held the Pokeball he had originally been brought in. "I don't know. They might decide to take you back to the mountain." Nidorina replied.

"The place where they found me is not _my_ mountain." The Onix remarked. " There is nothing for me there but bitter memories." It boomed. "A new human may take you as its own then." Nidorina suggested. "I do not want to go with a new human…. It will be a stranger to me. Untrusted." The Onix sad, continuing to sway slowly and lazily. "One of those humans may keep you instead, then." Nidorina shrugged. "That one there would have sent his bird to attack me the night I was brought here, had it not been for your human stopping him. These humans lack compassion; I do not want any of them either." The Onix responded.

Nidorina fell silent, glancing around the facility. "Maybe you will stay here then, where they can continue to heal you." She said; the Onix did not cease its relaxed swaying. "The beeping machines remind me of my former prison, and too many humans come to wake me at all hours of the day and night to poke, prod, and disturb me. I do not want to stay here." The Onix replied. "Nidorina!" Human-Alex called; the Nidorina's ears perked, and she rose. "I am being called. I'm sorry; I may have to go." Nidorina replied, pacing along the cold tile floor toward human-Alex. The Onix let out a dull rumble, and began to follow.

Three times Alex tried to leave the Onix; three times the giant creature nearly knocked down a wall or collapsed a ceiling as it proceeded to follow him along the increasingly narrow corridors from its room, apparently utterly unaware of the fact that walls were not meant to be destroyed or simply burrowed through like rock – more than once it brushed aside the Nurses and Chanseys' attempts at confining it to its hospital bay; Alex rubbed his neck standing before the Onix, awkwardly.

"...Well…" Ranger Jenny remarked hesitantly, "….This complicates things." She said, with equal parts amusement and concern; Alex stared up at the massive creature, resuming swaying blithely once he was within its sight again. "Tell me about it. Mom and I didn't _actually_ plan on bringing that thing home; it's gigantic." Alex said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "Well… They're relatively low-maintenance – there's that…" Jenny offered, encouragingly. "–And, they don't eat much, or leave Onix-sized 'messes' in your yard like flesh-and-blood Pokemon do…" She added, sympathetically.

"It could destroy my entire house on accident!" Alex protested. "...He seems to like you. Maybe you could get your Nidorina to help teach it?" Jenny shrugged helplessly; Alex rubbed his face with a hand. "Mom's gonna flip – we're still trying to break Nidorina of the habit of raiding the refrigerator at night now that she's figured out there's food in it. What in the world am I going to do if it decides to start burrowing through people's yards or chewing on the foundations of their houses?!" Alex groaned.

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Alex's mother had to crane her neck directly up to look at the Onix, now coiled and swaying cheerfully in the front yard; Featherbeak, perched on a thick falconer's pad on her shoulder, did the same. "...I'm gonna call him Rocky." Alex remarked sheepishly; Cassandra put her hands on her hips. "Oh come on, look how happy he is! Don't make me send him away; he's been through enough abuse already." Alex protested, trying to keep the amusement from his voice as Cassandra hesitantly approached – the Onix watched her closely.

As they made a circuitous route around the enormous serpent, even in spite of herself Alex's mother found herself shaking her head and growing increasingly upset at the extent of his injuries. "You say the Rockets did this to him?" Cassandra asked, a powerless smolder beginning to develop in her tone. "I think so, yes. All the equipment they attached to him had a giant red 'R' stamped all over it." Alex said, growing somewhat despondent.

"The surgical team studied the things they removed from its body and coordinated with organized crime division of the police. This isn't the first time they've seen something of this nature, but it's so far the worst… Well, the worst that anybody _officially_ knows of, anyway." Alex said, letting the ominous statement hang in the air for a moment; the Onix's massive head turned to watch them as completed their walk around it.

"The surgical team had to cut off and remove almost a thousand pounds of armor plating off of him, most of which was directly bolted into his body. The detectives guess he was probably a failed experiment in trying to make a damage-resistant Pokemon; the surgical team had to remove some kind of computer-machine implanted partially into his nervous system that was designed to do the opposite of the power-limiting belts that machoke and machamp wear. I guess they were trying to force him into being lot stronger a fighter." Alex said.

Though the swaying stopped, Rocky did not object when Alex's mother and he approached and lay his hands on a section of its stone body – very gently, she ran a finger through one of the pockmark-like scars in its stony body where a lag bolt had been hammer-drilled into him. "I always hated those miserable Rockets. I feel terrible knowing they're still up to their old tricks, doing these kinds of things to poor, innocent pokemon." Alex's mother said, a slight tremble in her voice; Alex nodded in agreement.

Rocky slowly lowered his enormous head to better see what they might be up to – the giant stone pokemon finally relaxed again when Alex turned and draped his hands over the nose-like ridge, petting and patting him reassuringly; Rocky's large eyes shifted to the human female: now that he was much closer to her, he saw concern in her hazel eyes – the same concern that he saw in the younger smaller male. The urge to sway contentedly filled the Onix twice more than before.

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"Featherbeak?" Nidorina called out quietly into the darkness of the unlit house. "I'm here." Featherbeak responded – Nidorina hardly heard the flap of his wings as he dropped from his perch; evidently his broken wing had finally healed to the point he could use it again without complaint. "I can't sleep." She mumbled as she approached, flopping down on the plush carpet floor beside the old bird.

"Have something on your mind, do you?" Featherbeak guessed; Nidorina paused, knowing full well already what his answer would be before she even voiced the question. "Do you ever miss the mountain?" The Nidorina asked, trying to keep the edge from her voice. "...No, not at all. Do you?" Featherbeak asked. "...A little. I don't know why." She admitted, sullenly.

"It's called 'homesickness'; those feelings will eventually pass." Featherbeak replied, amused. "It's been weeks already." She protested, unhappily. "You were always stubborn. Give it a few months – you'll come around when you no longer have to root through snow to find things to eat anymore even when it gets cold." Featherbeak answered; Nidorina only blew a deep breath through her nose. "Stubborn pup! Get some sleep and you'll forget about it." The old Noctowl chided gently, with amusement. "I already told you I can't." The blue said, persistently.

" _Yes…_ _Y_ _ou_ _can_ _._ " Featherbeak asserted quietly, and Nidorina's ears perked up slightly at the statement. "Rest… _._ _Y_ _ou've had a long day._ " In spite of the restlessness, Nidorina felt her eyelids begin to droop, as Featherbeak's now strangely soothing voice began to relax her mind. "Relax… _Let your concerns fade away._ " Featherbeak seemed to grow distant, as the carpet seemed to grow more and more comfortable beneath the suddenly exhausted Nidorina.

" _Think of sweet dreams,_ _my dear_ _; you'll feel better in the morning._ " Featherbeak said, as his voice began to lull her to sleep. By the time the thought occurred to the Nidorina that the wily old hoot might be putting her to sleep with his Hypnosis as he had so many times before, she found herself too drowsy to protest; the first snore left her nose, and Featherbeak return to his perch to preen contentedly.

 **.: The End :.**

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 **A word from the Author:**

Unfortunately all good things must come to an end. It sucks! I know! But, this story was conceptualized and written in two days' time, and ironically, I originally never intended share it publicly either; thus, 'The Mountain' was destined from the start to be more of a short story than a whole saga. Luckily, the ride doesn't end just yet.

I wasn't satisfied with how little I got to touch upon the Nidorina's upbringing in the story, so I wrote a small series of micro-chapters that are more of like an extreme prequel to 'The Mountain' that give a fuller recounting of her upbringing. However, in my opinion they don't fit the flow and feel of the original story, so you have a free pass to ignore them if you think they're stupid. For those of you who are still curious, expect the first mini-chapter to drop in a few days.

For the rest of you, I do eventually plan to continue Alex and the Nidorina's story. Thank you all for the positive feedback; it's given me some groundwork to begin the next adventure with!

Cheers!

~G.


	10. At First Sight'

_Author's Note:_ If The Mountain seemed under-represented as a dangerous place to be in 'The Mountain', then this mini-series will completely fix that. Originally the whole thing was supposed to be written like this but I was't sure if I'd be overdoing it or not, hence why I said I didn't think these fit the flow and feel of 'The Mountain'. I got numerous complaints about the formatting of the story; although I'm convinced I didn't do this whole 'modern fiction formatting standards' thing right, I tried it anyway.

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 **Caution:** Although I deliberately toned down the squicky parts as much as I could to keep it site-friendly, this chapter should be considered 'grimdark'.

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A plaintive whining squeak reached Featherbeak's keen ears, and he smiled as only a beaked creature could smile: With his eyes.

 _Some young Pokemon has made the sad mistake of leaving their nest._ He thought hungrily.

It would mean a quick and easy meal tonight, and he quickly began to focus his attention on the whining whimper. Caution tugged at his mind – it was not the right time of year for most Pokémon to hatch; it was too late in the year for breeding season.

Still, the simple knowledge that some unfortunate set of parents – either careless or dead – had left their nest unguarded and their young unaware of the dangers of making too much noise, made the owl slow his uneven, painful winging rhythm and dive closer to the ground; turning his head one way and then the other, he immediately honed in on the source of the squeaking whine.

 _Aha… Somewhere up ahead,_ Featherbeak thought, as he flew.

A terrible stench drifted up on the early night wind palpable even to the Noctowl's run-of-the-mill nose, and Featherbeak's lower-lidded smile grew wider: it was the unmistakable scent of carrion.  
The parents must have been killed recently, and the offspring left alone to fend for themselves.

 _To leave the young to die slowly without food or water would be a terrible tragedy. I suppose in eating them, I'm only doing what's merciful._ Featherbeak thought, feeling a pang of vague sympathy for the hapless whelp somewhere ahead.

As the Noctowl flapped on however, the stink became increasingly strong; soon, Featherbeak's thoughts grew even more cautious – to generate a stink of this level would require a whole family of Furrets, or Rattata dying all at once… Or being killed by something much larger and more dangerous than he.

The clouds parted, allowing the moon to shine, and it was if the sun had come out to Featherbeak's keen eyes: _Aha,_ _there_ _you are…_ He thought.

The middle-aged Noctowl spotted a large irregular shape at the center of a very old, unused game path near the upper reaches of the foothills of the mountain; it was undoubtedly the source of the high pitched crying vibrating in his ears

As Featherbeak closed in, a vague sense of pity and disappointment washed over him: _It's a human. A_ _dead_ _human._ The Noctowl decided, gliding in more closely for a better look.

Stiffly adjusting his wings despite the pain of old, half-healed injuries within them, he landed hard on a tree branch overlooking the dead biped and studied it cautiously for a moment, closely analyzing every detail about it.

Of particular interest was the human's leg – though the entire corpse had already spent the day and perhaps longer bloating in the hot summer sun, a large and hideous purple lump on the deceased human's lower leg stood out as highly unusual to Featherbeak's eyes.

... _B_ _itten by an Ekans,_ He decided, with a resigned sigh.

The Mountain claimed yet another unwary victim; Featherbeak shook his head – it was a common sight, and by now the old bird had been thoroughly desensitized to the never ending parade of unwary victims of the unforgiving mountainside.

The squeaking whine that had originally attracted Featherbeak's attention suddenly spiked, reaching an almost frantic crescendo suddenly; however, the noise came from the human – intrigued, Featherbeak spread his aching wings and fluttered forward, to land on the dead creature; unsurprisingly, his talons pierced the dead human's flesh, and rotten offal bubbled out where his talons dug in.

 _What have we here? A backpack?_ _What goodies_ _could be_ _trapped inside_ _…?_ Featherbeak asked himself rhetorically.

The Noctowl froze momentarily, as something inside shifted, pushing outward against the material of the pack – however, after a moment, he realized it was small: _very_ small.

Thus, Featherbeak set to savaging the material with his wickedly sharp beak; a moment later, he had torn away enough for a tiny creature trapped inside to squirm its way out into the humid summer night air – the creature still smelled of egg fluids.

 _This human must have been carrying around this hatchling's egg before it died; it must have_ _birthed_ _within the last while or so._ Featherbeak realized, remembering the humans' odd habit of stealing other pokemon's eggs and carrying them around until they hatched.

Tiny spits slowly wound back and forth – they were the source of the newly hatched creature's frantic cries.

 _It would have been eaten alive by ants if I had not gotten here sooner,_ Featherbeak decided, seeing them scurrying over the skin of the hatchling and no doubt inflicting painful bites all the while.

 _What a dreadfully slow way to die…_ Featherbeak though, clicking his beak in anticipation… And then freezing.

The miniscule hatchling, perhaps no larger than a tennis ball, oriented on Featherbeak's massive-by-comparison talons, its tiny nose working – Featherbeak paused, as the creature squirmed toward his talons blindly, still unable to open its eyes.

 _Curse_ _it._ Featherbeak glowered, recognizing the shape of the creature after only a moment of observing it.

 _It's a Nidoran…_ _P_ _oisonous._ The Noctowl's beak clicked in agitation, as the infant creature continued to writhe helplessly before him – everything about it looked so deliciously helpless and inviting, like a Rattata whelp.

 _It looks_ _delicious_ … Featherbeak thought – his stomach rumbled, and he remembered then the lack of success hunting he'd had the two days previously.

The Nidoran pup whimpered and whined piteously, as an ant continued to bite it somewhere; the Noctowl paused, its beak continuing to click in frustration as its mind worked.

 _It is so very young that its spines may not yet be very well developed; I_ _probably_ _should_ _n't have anything_ _to worry about..._ Featherbeak decided, reaching forward and seizing it roughly.

However, the aging owl recoiled sharply as one or two spines prodded the rough skin of his foot sharply, threatening to pierce it.

The action brought out a fresh wave of miserable and terrified screeches from the pup; thus, Featherbeak released the squealing runt, before its spines penetrated.

 _The spines_ _are_ _formed, and they_ _do_ _seem to be dangerous already,_ the Noctowl decided, in irritation.

Evidently sensing that the scent before it was not friendly after all, the Nidoran pup began to try and use its tiny legs to drag itself away from him; it succeeded in getting only a few inches before Featherbeak stepped over it again with just a single pace, studying it hungrily still.

 _The spines are inconvenient, but, they are on the outside – and you have delicious meat and organs still within you, young one._ Featherbeak thought, on the verge of drooling at the notion of its tiny bones splintering satisfyingly within his beak.

However, caution again won out – Featherbeak paused, yet again.

 _It is poisonous – that venom has to come from_ _somewhere_ _, probably within,_ the owl thought.

 _Am I_ _REALLY_ _so confident in my admittedly poor understanding of its species as to bet my life on it not poisoning me from the inside out?_ He wondered.

 _After all,_ _I've only ever encountered one or two of these creatures in battle before..._ Featherbeak decided, realizing he'd already been wrong once about the spines of the creature and their readiness to defend the newborn pup.

Bitterness began to set in, and Featherbeak's feathers began to stand on end, puffing the creature out significantly, making him seem double in size.

" _Ah… I tassssste sssssomething deliciousssss on the air."_ A dangerous voice hissed, suddenly capturing Featherbeak's full and undivided attention.

An Ekans – undoubtedly the one that bit the dead human – began to slowly slither out of the grass toward Featherbeak.

"Stay back. This Nidoran pup is mine; you can eat the human if you want." The Noctowl said, firmly.

" _The human issss too big to eat._ " The Ekans said, continuing to slither closer to Featherbeak.

" _But: I am willing to be fair... You can have your life in exchange for the Nidoran pup._ " The Ekans said, its tongue flicking in and out.

" _My_ life?" Featherbeak demanded, haughtily.

"How about I keep the Nidoran pup and you _bite your own tail_ ," Featherbeak spat, "Before I bite it for you? I saw it first, and I haven't eaten in days." Featherbeak said, rebuffing the snake.

"Fine." The snake said, beginning to coil up a distance away.

" _You eat the Nidoran pup,_ " It said, beginning to tense, " _–And I'll eat you!_ "

The Ekans let out a terrible hiss, using its coiled muscles like a spring to fling itself toward Featherbeak with its mouth wide; however, the wily bird had known to expect this the moment the Ekans coiled – and delivered his retort in the form of a whirlwind that stopped the Ekans in its tracks and began to blow it away.

Hissing terribly and not expecting the Noctowl to have defeated the same surprise attack that had killed the unsuspecting human, the snake slammed to the dirt on its back only a moment later, knocked senseless.

" _You'll–!_ " It began to threaten, until a massive talon caught its head and clamped it shut.

"–Be having Ekans for dinner, instead." Featherbeak replied coldly, then savaged the coiling and writhing creature's neck until it ceased moving.

A moment later, the Noctowl's attention returned to the Nidoran pup, still squealing and whining pitifully.

Again, Featherbeak paused, frowning deeply – he now had a fresh kill that he could safely eat so long as he discarded the venomous head; on that thought, the owl did so and began to eat.

However, the Nidoran pup continued to whine and cry for its non-existent parents, and would undoubtedly continue to do so until it either died of starvation or something else attracted by its cries happened along and killed it – such brutality was survival on the mountain.

The Nidoran pup's nose worked again; its cries continued unabated, instinctively terrified of the smell of blood so close by. Finally sated at long last, Featherbeak no longer had any urge to continue eating; as a bird, he actively avoided the desire to gorge – it would make him too heavy to fly, which would leave him helpless in turn to the mercy of something larger and equally hungry.

Furthermore, there was still the issue of eating a Nidoran pup, which might make him deathly ill. Irritation of a different sort began to set in, and the weathered avian hopped forward until he was again standing above the Nidorina pup, in the perfect position to end its crying permanently.

The urge to simply nip the thing's spine in two and spare it the terrible suffering of a slow and agonizing death continued to bother the owl, and his beak clicked again, itching, as the squirming creature continued fruitlessly to seek a friendly presence – however, the longer he watched its helpless squirming, the more something about the pitiable creature began to nag at Featherbeak; it reminded him of hatchlings of a different sort.

 _Would it be so wrong of me to spare the_ _miserable_ _little beast?_ Featherbeak wondered for a moment.

 _Sure, it would probably get eaten… But what if it doesn't?_ The Noctowl twisted his head around, beak continuing to click as he pondered hard the ethical conundrum.

 _Its species are not native to this mountain,_ Featherbeak thought. _I'll never find another like it here to bring_ _it_ _to._

The obvious answer of caring for the orphaned pup himself rose up in Featherbeak's mind: this was by far the most uncomfortable thought to deal with, and for a moment it filled him with the urge to bite down then and there.

 _No…! It's not this hatchling's fault your clutches always seem to die,_ Featherbeak thought, scolding himself.

 _You're just unfit to be a parent, which is your own fault. More to the point, you're unfit to be_ _this_ _creature's parent; you don't even have mammary glands, which it will surely need, and_ soon, He realized.

No _, this pup will need someone else to care for it that certainly isn't a Noctowl. But who? And what?_ Featherbeak continued to ponder; the Noctowl's head continued twisted around the harder he thought, until at last he was looked directly behind himself: only then did inspiration seem to finally strike.

 _Aha!_ _I_ _could_ _take it to the den of a family of Rattata!_ He practically cried out.

 _The delicious little_ _rodents_ _are forever_ _in season and forever_ _whelping; they might be willing to care for_ _this hatchling_ _with sufficient 'encouragement'!_ Featherbeak thought, glancing down at the pup. Glancing around once, the Noctowl seized it in a foot very gently, lifted off, and flew away.

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"I can hear you in there." Featherbeak announced, studying the hole at the base of the tree.

The squeaking chattering inside fell immediately silent – at least until the naturally excitable creatures began moaning of doom and death, scaring themselves and each other into making even more racket than before.

" _Quiet!_ Featherbeak snapped, letting out an ominous squall for emphasis that silenced the Rattata again, this time completely.

"I have here a Nidoran pup that must be taken care of." Featherbeak declared evenly – whispers began and soon, the Rattata were chattering wildly amongst each other.

"Then 'take care' of it yourself, you heartless monster!" A voice from inside shouted out.

"Murderer!" One called.

"Kin-killer!" Another shouted.

Featherbeak's irritation began to grow – a proud old bird like himself would brook no insolence from vermin such as these Rattata.

" _No_ , you impossible little idiots! I didn't mean kill it, I mean it has been orphaned and needs a mother – or at least someone to feed it like its mother would." Featherbeak snapped.

The conversation within the stump grew silent for the longest it had yet – seeing this as his opportunity to make an impression, Featherbeak squeezed the pup once firmly to upset it into crying, and then rolled it with a somewhat disdainful flick of his talon up to the entrance of the Rattata den.

The pup's squeals began instantly at such rough treatment, filling the ears of the terrified warren of rats within the stump; the louder the pup cried, the more convincing a case it made for itself in needing their help, Featherbeak thought. A brief flash of hope – and hunger – flitted through the Noctowl's mind as a lone snout poked out from the hole, sniffed for a moment, and then retreated immediately inside to the safety of the burrow.

"I cannot take care of this creature, but you can," Featherbeak began.

"…Because I can hear the squeak of young in there." He said, trying to suppress a grim smile.

"What's in it for me?" A higher pitched voice demanded.

Featherbeak's beak worked slightly, as he pondered the thought. What could he offer, indeed?

"I won't _intentionally_ hunt any of you for the rest of the sunny season." Featherbeak finally decided at length, with a deep and unhappy sigh – they were a prime source of conveniently located food not far from his tree.

Silence reigned for a time, but Featherbeak's keen ears strained to hear a whispered sentiment a moment later: " _Just take the whelp and I'll kill it. He'll never know the difference, and he'll leave us alone!_ " A voice suggested.

Featherbeak bristled, instantly enraged at the idea of the rats attempting to outsmart him.

"Unlike you miserable little beasts, this Nidoran is too dangerous for me to eat – so, I can come to check on its progress from time to time and make sure it's still alive. If you hurt it even _slightly_ , I'll guard the entrance to this den personally and hunt each and every last one of you that ever tries to go or come until you're _all gone_!" Featherbeak snapped, infuriated.

A sharp squeak of protest greeted Featherbeak's ears – the conniving trickster that suggested that bit of deceit had evidently been bitten sharply in reprimand by one of its fellows, and that assuaged Featherbeak's temperamental pride; hesitant conversation chattered between the Rattata inside, as they weighed the seriousness against the owl's threat against their predicament.

"We aren't coming out while you're around!" The shaky reply finally came back.

" Feh! I didn't expect you to." Featherbeak said scornfully, tossing his head star ward – it was the owl equivalent of rolling one's eyes.

" Count to ten, and then I'll be gone." The Noctowl said.

" _BUT:_ I _will_ be back in a few nights to check on the pup." Featherbeak said ominously, then glanced up at the branches of the tree above them.

Quietly, he fluttered up to one of them, and settled in to watch – half a minute later, the Rattata sent to retrieve the pup eventually darted forth long enough to drag it back inside. Soon, the pup's tragic mewling finally ceased, and Featherbeak could only hope that meant it was finally being suckled at long last.


	11. Courage Initiative Awareness & Ignorance

Featherbeak roused to the sound of tiny, uncertain footsteps somewhere near his tree and immediately it rouse him to full wakefulness despite the fact that it was early sunset at best. The noises continued and he silently hopped forward to the lip of the knothole that served as his den; immediately taking to the tree limb that served as his perch, he studied the forest floor intently for only a moment before spotting movement in the dim light.

 _Could fortune have been so kind as to deliver today's meal right here to me in my tree?_ He wondered hopefully, tensing as a small thicket of undergrowth twitched slightly – the noises continued, filling Featherbeak with anticipation – tragically, a nestling must have strayed from its den and parents judging by the sound of it, and had gotten lost. _A pity. I suppose the burden falls upon me to… 'Take care' of the_ _youngling._ He thought, amused; the undergrowth moved again, no longer able to shield Featherbeak from catching his first glimpse at its unsuspecting occupant.

Silently, he dropped like a rock – and then veered away at the last second. The tiny creature that he had lunged at jumped nearly out of her little blue skin at the wholly unexpected appearance of such a comparatively large creature, and she stumbled back several feet, squeaking in alarm – undeterred, Featherbeak drew himself up to his full height, wings half-raised should pursuit be necessary. However, as he blinked away the bright light of day, his eyes adjusted and he paused to weigh the situation – his decision to veer away had been well served.

Quivering slightly, a blue Nidoran pup stared nervously up at him, uncertainty and nervousness etched in every fiber of its being; it paused, evidently encouraged by the fact that Featherbeak had not immediately attacked… But also wholly unsure of whether or not to approach the fearsome looking bird either. Absently, Featherbeak searched his memory briefly: _Blues of this species are male, I think. No… Was it female? Yes, I believe this one's female –_ _More t_ _ender_.

Featherbeak took a step forward, and the tiny blue female shrank into a ball reflexively – dozens of tiny, pine needle-like spines rose up all along her body, giving Featherbeak pause again. _This little morsel seems vaguely familiar…_ His sharp mind worked for just a moment, trying to place where he'd encountered the little creature, and forgetting the effort with a growl of his stomach.

The pup quivered once – she might have tried to edge away a step, but was held too firmly in the iron grip of fear to actually move; Featherbeak's beak worked once, studying the spiny creature. It would be childishly easy – no pun intended – to dispatch the unfortunate little thing with the swipe of a talon… But Featherbeak hesitated – his memory worked again for a moment as he considered the vaguely familiar quandary: This creature was poisonous, he knew. But How poisonous, and _where_?

If the Noctowl could defeat its spines, would he find anything edible under its flesh? The Nidoran's nose twitched and worked, revealing her terror; Featherbeak's spread his wings, preparing to use them to spring – a nagging familiarity tugged at his thoughts, but the Noctowl dismissed it.

"All Pokémon on this mountain are only ever one mistake away from death… And by venturing away from home, you just made the first and last mistake you'll ever make, dear." Featherbeak announced, gravely – the pup began to shiver violently. "…But first, I want to know: You seem familiar. Have we met before?" Featherbeak asked after relaxing only slightly, confident that absolutely nothing could stop him or save the pup from her fate now.

However, the miserable pup finally issued a wordless and utterly miserable sob – a show that made effectively no impact on Featherbeak, who as a hunter was used to such displays from his prey. _I suppose she must be too young to talk – just as well,_ Featherbeak decided, until the pitch of the piteous wails rose sharply.

It might have been an attempt at screech; Featherbeak paused, wincing only slightly at the utterly pathetic attempt… Yet even so he stopped, as the increasingly familiar cry jarred his memory: _Wait… I remember now!_ Featherbeak thought, hesitating. The owl's mind drifted back to the hatchling Nidorina pup he'd found two weeks ago, and he frowned for a moment. "Hey. Enough. I said _enough_!" He shouted loudly enough that terror choked the pup so tightly its cries in its died throat.

"You can understand me." He observed, hesitating for a moment as he tried to judge the pup's age, "...Can you speak too? Come, answer me." Featherbeak demanded somewhat impatiently. "I-it's not m-my fault I'm alone!" The pup whined, and Featherbeak paused, weighing this response. "Where is your family?" He asked, frowning darkly, thinking back to the den of Rattata he'd left the pup with – no Pokémon her age might have been allowed to leave home on its own normally.

"They kicked me out because I'm too big to fit in our den anymore. I didn't _want_ to leave home!" The pup responded, miserably; Featherbeak frowned deeper. "Were they your real family, or your adopted family?" He asked, clicking his beak in annoyance – if the pup's story was true, then it cast the 'no prey' deal Featherbeak had made with the Rattata into doubt. "I… I don't know. They weren't very friendly; they were purple and white. I look different, so I guess not." She responded.

Featherbeak quietly eased out of his threatening posture to think – the pup hiccuped and sniffled wretchedly, but the old Noctowl hardly paid attention. _If they've released her already, then they've released me from my obligation to them too, which means there's better hunting_ _out there_ _than this Nidoran pup. It would be a pointless waste to slay her when she may not even be edible…_ Featherbeak decided, blowing an annoyed sigh through his nose.

Seeing him visibly slacken his guard, the pup sniffled some more, edging a step back – Featherbeak straightened. "I go to find better hunting now that prey just got a lot more plentiful." Featherbeak announced, glancing upward at the sky – it was now twilight, and the pup seemed to be having an increasingly difficult time seeing him in the dark by the way she blinked and squinted constantly.

" You're getting a second chance most beings _don't_ get: I will allow you to live for now." Featherbeak announced graciously to the pup, "…But remember my words well: This mountain is dangerous, and all it takes is one misstep, one momentary lapse in judgment, to cost you your life. Do not be so careless as to make the same mistakes you did that attracted my attention – other Pokémon may not be as generous as I. Consider this a friendly warning from one Pokémon to another." Featherbeak commanded, thinking of Arbok and other less-kind creatures that prowled the mountain.

The Nidorina rose slightly, encouraged by the owl's words, though she still resembled a pine tree bough with her spines jutting out all over her. "... _W-_ _w_ _hat_ mistakes?" The pup dared to ask, as Featherbeak prepared to leap into the sky stiffly again – the owl paused, and shot her a dark look that made the pup realize she had foolishly tempted fate yet again by daring to stop the Noctowl from departing. However, Featherbeak paused, again weighing the options: the pup's little scarlet eyes, wide with terror and awash with liquid grief, stared out at him pleadingly.

The vision of dead chicks – motionless and still, victims of terrible cold and even more terrible hunger – flashed with startling clarity in Featherbeak's mind's eye. It had been his last clutch, when he'd grown too old to successfully provide for them in his condition; sensing the end without ever needing to stay, his mate had departed one night and never returned, leaving him with the grim task of watching the last of them cross over to the great beyond one at a time, alone.

The bitter memories welled up, and at first it was Featherbeak's instinct to peck the bothersome little pup's eyes out for good measure… Then, the urge died away as his chicks had – she possessed as wide and innocent little eyes as they did; Featherbeak sighed again, though this time it was with the barest hint of exhaustion.

The bitter memories welled up, and at first it was Featherbeak's instinct to peck the bothersome little pup's eyes out then and there… Then, as his chicks had, the urge slowly died away before Featherbeak, as he considered the pup again, this time without the hungry stare of a predator: She possessed as wide and innocent little eyes as his chicks did, and though it stung Featherbeak's pride to admit it, there was more intelligence in her scarlet orbs than he had seen in more than one of his own brood, live or dead.

What had motivated her to dare stopping him? _A workable mix of courage, initiative, awareness,_ _and… Ignorance_ _. Youthful_ _ignorance_ _._ Featherbeak decided – to her credit, she did not lower her spines; whether this was a conscious decision or not remained to be seen, but it would have indeed made it considerably more difficult for the old Noctowl to have attacked her without potentially injuring himself.

"Your first mistake was being alone, away from home." He said, adjusting his wings so that they lay flat against his body, at ease. "But I was told to go away. Where am I supposed to go if not back to my den?" The pup asked, miserable. "The home you knew is no longer ' _your_ ' den; since you are on your own now, your first priority must make a new one of your very own – somewhere dry during the wet season, warm in the cold season, but hidden and secure all year around. You have precious little time to begin scouting one out – fall is already upon us and you'll freeze without adequate protection from the elements come winter." Featherbeak replied.

The pup rose to sit on her haunches, though she very wisely did not relax her spines – Featherbeak had to suppress a mild surge of amused approval at such prudence. "Where will I find a den then?" The pup asked; her voice trembled only a little – rightly, she was overwhelmed with the truly daunting prospect of the task; Featherbeak nodded absently in approval: this pup was indeed very intelligent.

The old Noctowl realized in that moment that the pup's fault – in attracting his attention – was the fault of the unscrupulous Rattata that had weaned her. The embers of hate began to smolder within Featherbeak; it rankled in his mind that he – a predator – had the decency toward his prey to teach them of survival, than they – fellow prey – did. The Rattata had taught her absolutely nothing of survival as any parent would their offspring, and booted her out at the earliest opportunity; it was not her own fault that she knew nothing of life on the Mountain.

"Hm… I'm sure I don't know, pup." Featherbeak replied absently – _his_ ideal den was the knothole in a tree… But she did not have wings, and he did. "I suppose you might dig one out yourself at the base of a tree, if you can't find one that's been abandoned." Featherbeak suggested, with a roll of his wings – a human gesture, a shrug. "In any case, you would do well to do it soon, but not tonight. Your second and equally fatal mistake was wandering around in the dark." The bird counseled.

"It's clear to me you cannot see in the dark nearly as well as I can, meaning your kind are more than likely active only during the day. You should hole up in your new den at night, keeping a watchful eye out for predators like me, or Ekans, which could sneak into your lair and bite and eat you." Featherbeak explained – the pup shrank a little more, again discouraged by the weight of the task ahead of her. "What's more, I could hear your stomping around through the brush long before I ever saw you. For one as small and relatively defenseless as you, utter silence is the key to survival, at least until you get older and more difficult to eat." Featherbeak added; the pup glanced at her paws and the groud in bewilderment.

"Silence is the key to survival, as is situational awareness. You did not see me until I was already upon you – the inability to see in the dark for creatures like me is another reason you should hide until the sun rises. It's true you still stand as much of a chance being taken by a Arbok in the day, but then the failing is your own for not seeing it coming." Featherbeak said pointedly. The pup glanced around the gathering blackness all around them, uncertainty written in her every breath. Featherbeak silently shook his head pitiably – she had a lot to learn, and precious little time to do it… What's more, it was officially time for him to begin his hunt, now that he would not be making a meal of this pup after all.

"I wish you luck – you'll need it. Keep your wits about you, and you _might_ survive." Featherbeak said, pointedly indicating with his tone that the lessons were over – she was on her own again. Featherbeak drew himself up, casting his eyes to the starry skies above; the pup shifted weight from paw to paw anxiously, glancing around. Without another word, he sprang rheumatically into the skies and flapped off, leaving the hapless pup there at the base of the tree.

The mounting wave of frustration and anger within Featherbeak coincided conveniently with the rumble of hunger within his gullet – the Rattata had violated the spirit of their agreement with him, and had tossed out the innocent pup to the untender mercies of the wild. _Very well – t_ _wo can play at that game_ _… I said I'd spare them for the rest of the 'season',_ He mused to himself darkly, _And the summer heat is_ _technically_ _already giving way to the chill from the upper reaches of the mountain._

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When Featherbeak returned to his tree around midnight, it was with the satisfying weight of a conniving Rattata nestled within his belly; with his mind and body both sated, Featherbeak nearly missed the shadowy pocket that had grown at the base of his tree while he was gone – the startling discovery made him miss a wing beat, resulting in him dipping into a haphazard wing-over dive to recover his momentum. It didn't take but a few short seconds for Featherbeak's keen eyes to spot the dozing figure nestled within the shallow bowl excavated within the crotch of the tree, shielded on two sides by roots; the shock that the pup would have been so foolish as to invade _his_ territory momentarily overrode the surge of territorial agitation that gripped the bird's chest.

To her credit, the pup must have sensed his approach – she began to rouse, but not quickly enough to do her any good, and Featherbeak alighted in front of her, trapping her against the tree. "What do you think you're doing?" Featherbeak asked evenly. Although somewhat annoyed, he no longer hungry – thus, the old Noctowl had far more patience for the antics of the pup now, and truth be told, her actions intrigued him.

However, unable to see his lack of a threatening posture in the dark terrified the pup, and she backed away only a step or two before the trunk of the tree both trapped her and stopped her retreat; again her spines rose – however, Featherbeak had to remind himself the action was probably subconscious, and not the body language of a challenge, to keep his own territorial instincts at bay.

"Sleeping…!" The pup responded, innocently. "...Please don't hurt me. I wasn't doing anything to you." The Nidoran whimpered, taking Featherbeak aback momentarily with her articulate plea; it pleased him that she had the good sense to understand his bothering her now meant she had chosen poorly the site for her new lair. "You were invading the base of my tree." Featherbeak responded, intending to probe her mind a little more – the night was young, and with his belly full, he had time.

"You aren't sleeping in the dirt here with me – this tree is plenty big enough for us to share, and you said I should have begun making my den as quickly as possible." The pup said, shakily; Featherbeak had to suppress an amused chuckle. "You are in my territory." The old Noctowl explained, lazily. "An area I call my own – it extends beyond my tree. Pokemon claim more than just their dens as their territory, and the largest and most dangerous will violently defend their territory from intruders." He explained – mistaking his explanation as the preamble to an assault, the pup again began crying piteously again, fearing for her life.

Though it was true the display awakened the desire to prey upon a weak and hapless victim within Featherbeak, the disciplined bird easily pushed away his hunter's instincts, by reminding himself he was full, and had no taste for wanton slaughter. "I won't eat you unless you keep crying like that. It's hurting my ears." Featherbeak stated – the comment had the desired effect of quieting the pup significantly, and she sniveled in silence for a few moments. Again, she showed no signs of lowering her spines – the elderly Noctowl nodded in approval.

"Then why did you wake me up?" The pup asked after regaining some measure of her composure; Featherbeak paused – why _had_ he bothered with the pup, if not to chase her off? "Don't mistake my not attacking you for a sign that you may stay here; I do prefer my privacy. But, I you are in sorely need of some instruction of the ways of the mountain, since your former custodians didn't see fit to do it themselves." Featherbeak said, belching under his breath and tasting fur. The pup said nothing to this, and so Featherbeak cleared his throat.

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By the time the sun rose hours later, Featherbeak was drained utterly – the inexhaustible store of questions about life and survival that all infant pokemon possessed was dwarfed by the astute follow-up questions the pup posed; her wariness surprised and amused Featherbeak continuously.

The bottomless array of questions had exhausted Featherbeak mentally if not physically – sensing that she had a golden opportunity to learn from someone who was patient if not outright friendly, the pup tried to squeeze as much knowledge out of Featherbeak in one night as some of his own hatchlings had in weeks.

By the time Featherbeak began to punctuate his long-winded explanations with yawns, the pup was fighting to keep her drooping eyelids up and open – she probably suspected that this might be her last chance to speak on friendly terms with the old bird, and willed herself through sheer determination to stay awake and continue learning so long as Featherbeak saw fit not to finally chase her off.

In spite of himself and his painfully bitter memories, Featherbeak soon realized his paternal instincts had come screaming back with full force, begging for the chance to make amends for his last failed clutch of deceased hatchlings – and unlike his instinct to kill the pup, her intelligence made Featherbeak increasingly displeased with himself and his original desire to chase her away.

The little blue Nidoran's once-sparkling scarlet eyes no longer resembled fresh drops of blood glinting in the moonlight – they were dulled with exhaustion, and yet still the pup persisted. "Wha… What will I know to find food when the snowy season starts?" She asked sleepily, stumbling over her words.

"Enough." Featherbeak declared, tired. The sudden change in his tone startled the pup into full wakefulness – her ears flattened against her head, as she realized lessons were finally over. Featherbeak cleared his throat – he was at a crossroads, he knew, because the once-dull instincts to mentor and raise now fully eclipsed his fading desire to tear into the little creature huddled before him.

"You impressed me tonight, pup." Featherbeak finally admitted, at length. "I will not harm you." He reiterated – relief sagged the pup's spines, but only a little; they wavered with the exhaustion of keeping them held up and at the ready for essentially the entire night.

"Rest now. Our lessons will continue with the twilight." He said; a cool detachment flooded the bird – finally coming to terms with his conscious thoughts, the instincts to eat and kill finally faded entirely away: his paternal instincts possessed no desire to harm his – this – hatchling, Featherbeak mentally corrected himself.

The pup let out an audible exhale of relief, but she nearly toddled over with the exhaustion pulling at her sagging muscles – she would not go far in her current condition, and Featherbeak knew it was utter folly to send the pup off in search of a new residence as exhausted and sleepy as she was. "...You may stay here – for today. Sleep. You will need your rest if we are to continue your lessons tonight." Featherbeak announced; at this, the pup fell to her belly in relief. It was all her tired mind needed to finally relax – she began snoring almost immediately.

Quietly, Featherbeak fluttered up to his own den, settling himself down for the day. Sparing a lone thought before allowing his mind to give itself fully to the concerns of a parent, Featherbeak yawned: _…When I said I was going to 'take care' of her, I hadn't mean it literally!_

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	12. Midwinter Nights

The blue pup shivered in her den – the winter thus far was going badly, and by Featherbeak's estimation, it had only just begun; the passage of time and the changing of the seasons foisted winter upon the Nidoran female far more quickly than she could prepare for – the night air grew even more chill, and soon her large, rodent-like teeth chattered.

An icy wind knifed through the opening of the den, biting into the blue's flank and sides cruelly – soon, the entire pup shivered, and a stinging, numbing pain began to take hold as the pup's muscles began to cramp from the chill.

"Featherbeak!" The pup cried; there was no answer.

"Featherbeak!" The pup squalled louder, instinctively sensing that she needed help surmounting the challenge of the cold, and soon – the astute pup realized her survival depended on it.

"Yes?" The sleepy voice of the owl finally called down a moment later – evidently Featherbeak had been napping.

"I'm cold." The pup whined.

Featherbeak paused. "I told you to harvest more grass for your den you still could, didn't I?" The Noctowl grumbled – his voice sounded muffled and distant; he was nestled up within his tree.

"I _did_!" The pup protested bitterly. "But it's cold! _Very_ cold! Far colder than is normal!"

Something in the pup's tone stirred caution within Featherbeak – he poked his head out of the opening of his den; at once, an icy wind immediately nipped at the nares of his beak and dried his eyes out.

The Noctowl's feathers and den insulated him from the frosty chill of what was certainly going to be an early snow, but the pup trapped on the ground would be fully at its mercy; moreover, he concluded immediately that the direction his den faced shielded him from the wind, and the pup's burrow had been fully exposed to it.

Already the cold made the old ache in Featherbeak's bad wing begin to ache and act up – the owl clicked his beak in agitation; he hated the cold season most of all, and there was no denying that it would visit them this night for sure, if the rheumatic ache in his joints was any sign.

"Featherbeak!" The pup whimpered again, and Featherbeak shook the thoughts of his own discomfort from his head.

With the uncanny silence of an owl, Featherbeak dropped the distance to the ground and felt the temperature plummet the further down he went.

"What did I do wrong, Featherbeak?" The pup asked piteously, and Featherbeak hunkered down, peering through the opening of the den – there was in fact plenty of straw and grass inside, but with the opening exposed to the wind, it would all be useless. A cold dread seized the bird as he cast his gaze skyward and saw nothing of the stars or moon above.

A snowflake drifted to the ground unseen by the pup, who lacked his keen night sight; Featherbeak sighed unhappily.

"Nothing. You did nothing wrong, youngling – it seems the wind is simply coming out of a direction your burrow can't shield you from. Ordinarily, now would be a terrible time for one as small as you to begin life – your kind should have been born months ago after the last of the thaws." He said, grimly; he could hardly distinguish the cold from the prickling of his feathers begin to stand up on end.

"What am I to do now? I don't know if I can handle this cold for much longer." The pup mumbled; Featherbeak studied her in alarm for a moment, noting that the little blue's shivering was gradually becoming less pronounced.

"You won't be able to do anything tonight, least of all dig a new burrow." Featherbeak's mind raced for a few moments until an idea presented itself. "You have control over your spines, do you not?" Featherbeak asked.

"Yes." The pup replied, her voice trembling.

"Make them lay as flat against you as you can." He ordered; he waited patiently for a moment, as more snowflakes began to drift around them.

"O-okay. I think." The pup replied; Featherbeak winced – he dreaded the idea that she might be losing the sensation in her skin… However, there could be only one thing done about it now.

"Keep your spines down flat against you. Under no circumstances are you to raise them, do you understand?" The Noctowl asked.

The shivering pup merely nodded obediently; without another word, Featherbeak spread his wings and seized the pup in his talons.

"No! Featherbeak! Why––!?" The pup cried out in horror, feeling the icy wind begin to whip past her; the Nidoran felt herself being carried skyward, though it was pitch dark… And then, she felt herself being tossed through the air for just a single moment, before landing inside a space where the air was warm, and still.

"W-w-w-w…!?" The pup babbled, though it was not the cold that made her stutter and stammer anymore; she righted herself immediately, and then saw a terrifying dark shadow blot out the subtle dimness that was the opening of Featherbeak's den.

"I am not going to eat you." Featherbeak grunted, stiffly. "This is my den. You will stay here until hopefully tomorrow when the sun burns up the clouds and you can try to excavate another burrow." Featherbeak responded, quietly.

The Nidoran pup felt a stinging prickling begin to wash over her skin, as if hundreds of ants began to bite and nip at her skin. "Ow! Something's biting me! Lots of somethings!" She cried out.

"There are no pests in here – that is probably sensation and circulation returning to your cold-numbed skin. Hopefully frostbite hasn't had the chance to set in." Featherbeak judged, after a moment.

The wind began a low moan outside as it picked up speed and began to whirl past the opening of the tree; Featherbeak relaxed slightly, relieved to have saved the pup from certain doom.

Still, inwardly, Featherbeak felt a wave of anxiety so grim it made him nauseous; already his hatchling – _this_ _pup,_ the Noctowl silently corrected himself – had met its end in his care. _I'm already off to a terrible start_ _._

Without another word, the aging Noctowl beak-rolled the shivering little blue into the bowl-like nest he'd made within the tree, and then placed himself atop her; there was silence for a few moment. "…What are you doing now?!" The pup demanded flatly, from beneath him. "Keeping you warm." He replied – there was a moment of silence, followed by the Nidoran pup shifting so that she lay more comfortably.

"Is this how you keep Noctowl hatchlings warm?" The pup eventually asked, once the shivering stopped altogether.

"No." Featherbeak responded, clearing his throat awkwardly. "…Normally female Noctowls are responsible for incubating eggs and guarding hatchlings, but there are none here now, so I will have to do…" Featherbeak admitted, trying to keep the embarrassment from his tone.

"It's just as well I suppose, because I doubt a female Noctowl would be willing to sit on a hatchling that was not hers, let alone her own species." He added more to himself than to the pup; no other Noctowl would have been so foolish.

"Well… This _is_ much warmer. My ears were killing me. Thank you." The pup muttered.

So thin and large, the blue's were terribly susceptible to the cold – the warmth of the bare flesh of Featherbeak's feet felt heavenly against them; for his part, the old Noctowl shouldered the discomfort of her icy ears without complaint.

"You won't be going back outside tonight. You may as well go back to sleep if you like." Featherbeak advised – the bird stared nervously out the entrance to his den, watching the snowflakes begin to fall with increasing speed.

"…Featherbeak?" The pup asked after some time in silence.

"Yes?" The Noctowl asked, momentarily distracted from unpleasant thoughts of the future.

"…I'm sorry for thinking you were going to eat me earlier." The pup responded; the owl grinned to himself with his eyes.

"Forget about it. I'm just glad you called out – you really would have frozen to death otherwise, I think. The winters can be harsh in this part of the world." He muttered absently, wishing as he always did around this time of the year that he was again by a warm human fire, out of the elements.

"What do you mean?" The pup asked; the question shook the nostalgic memories from Featherbeak's head – now seemed as good a chance as ever to continue mentoring the pup.

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The following dawn, Featherbeak blinked sleepily while staring blankly out of the den; a moment later, the Nidoran pup poked her head out from beneath him – she looked equally sleepy, but from just waking up rather than wanting to fall asleep as in the owl's case – the pup wordlessly approached the lip of the den, and poked her head out cautiously.

"Featherbeak!" She gasped, horrified, "The world is ending! The forest has died!" The pup fled from the opening of den, seeking refuge back under the owl.

"It's not ending, my dear. It's merely snow." Featherbeak replied with a quiet yawn.

"The white stuff you mentioned earlier?" The pup demanded, nervously.

"Yes, but, I suppose I should just show you." The owl said, carefully seizing the pup and carrying her aloft – the night before, she had been literally flying blind. Now with the sun up, she could see… And that resulted in a few near-pricks as her quills tried to rise in fear under Featherbeak's feet as she watched the ground rise up to her quickly.

"Flying is terrifying. Why do you do it so much!?" She demanded, once she was deposited in a small spot beneath a branch where it no snow lay on the ground.

"It's not terrifying to a creature with wings. Now: Snow. As we discussed, it's cold, and will freeze you to death if you spend too much time in it. Otherwise, it's relatively harmless." The owl announced, taking a few steps through the snow – the chill bit into his feet, and he clenched his beak tightly together. Hesitantly, the pup followed his example… And squalled in shock the moment the powdery frost touched her skin.

"B-r-r-r-r! It's everywhere. How am I supposed to get around?" The Nidoran pup asked, immediately recoiling from it; at that, Featherbeak perked up, glancing around.

"Well, normally, the sun would melt the snow this early on in the season…" Featherbeak trailed off, trying to keep the nervous edge from his voice as he glanced skyward – the gray skies above only showed a thick overcast looming low in the sky.

In her curiosity, the pup stumbled along, at times accidentally disappearing beneath the snow entirely where it was deeper than she expected, only to emerge grunting and shaking a moment later. Featherbeak cast a glance toward the pup's den – it was completely submerged in a snow drift, with nothing to show that it had been there; inwardly, he gave thanks to Arceus that he'd been able to save the pup after all.

"I liked it better in the den; this snow is too cold." The Nidoran observed.

"Yes, but, you'll die of boredom pent up in the den eventually, and it's difficult for me to fly with you in my talons. I doubt I need to remind you how difficult and unpleasant it will be to forage and relieve yourself from up there either." Featherbeak remarked.

"...Oh. Right." The pup realized, after a moment, sitting down awkwardly beside Featherbeak, and glancing around.

The bird's beak worked silently, as the Noctowl pondered the development: the pup's original impression was not far off. With the thick snow on the ground and the very thick and low-hanging cloud cover overhead, the forest was deathly silent; only the occasional gust whistled.

"We have some problems, my dear." Featherbeak finally admitted a moment later, deciding he may as well spare the Nidoran pup sweet lies and deal with her openly.

The pup looked up at Featherbeak, and his heart broke. There was the same wide-eyed innocence there, the same sparkling energy of youth, illuminated by the dim light filtering through the slate gray clouds, that Featherbeak had seen fade away to nothingness already once before. Moreover, the aging Noctowl saw trust there – trust that the owl would continue to guide her, despite the fact that he by all rights should have been a mortal enemy.

Featherbeak cleared his throat. "Although rare, there are times when the winter is harsh – unusually harsh. The presence of such a strong freeze so early on can only mean this winter will be particularly bad." He said, glancing around the frozen forest.

"The cold is bitter, the skies turn gray, and..." He said, taking a shaky inhale and exhale, "Food becomes scarce. The times ahead will be hard, sweetling." Featherbeak declared, shakily, remembering the time or two in years past where even he didn't think _he_ would survive the winter, after the cold had swooped in so abruptly as to freeze and kill off many of the prey animals on the Mountain.

The pup's expression became somber, realizing what it was Featherbeak might be trying to convey – she glanced around and looked at the snow. "…Featherbeak, I don't think I like this 'winter' season very much." She remarked.

The statement pierced Featherbeak's heart, and he absently draped a wing around the pup, absently nodding his assent quietly. As if mocking them, a drop of icy water splashed directly in Featherbeak's eye. "Quickly: Our time down here will be short. I believe we're in for freezing rain soon. If you have anything to do, do it now." The Noctowl said, nudging the pup along.

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Featherbeak blew a frustrated breath through his nose, which came out as a white puff in the frigid air. He knew the moment his talons touched the rock hard forest floor a day later that the pup would never even begin to make any headway in constructing a warmer burrow where the snow and cold would not bother her this day – perhaps even this season.

The pup scratched with her tiny, clawed forepaws at the frozen ground for a moment, digging industriously at the base of a different tree. Panting, her own breath coming out in white puffs, the pup eventually ceased her toils to inspect her work.

"Featherbeak… The ground is too hard to dig." The Nidoran said, a plaintive edge in her squeaky voice.

"I know, my dear, I know. It's not your fault." Featherbeak said, trying to keep the edge from his tone; his throat worked in an empty swallow, as he glanced around the land of frigid solitude.

"You will have to spend the rest of the winter in the den then. There is no alternative." Featherbeak remarked, trying to keep his tone light – although acute disappointment bowed the pup's shoulders heavily, she nodded; as incredibly boring and stifling as it was to one brimming with youthful energy, the pup knew being cooped up all day was preferable at least to freezing to death.

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The pup did not move as much – it made concentrating on something other than food or her ailing stomach less difficult; by now, weeks into the winter season, even her boundless curiosity had finally begun to die off, as Featherbeak's mentoring and lessons ceased being a distraction from an empty stomach.

Per such teaching, the pup had grown used to relying on her ears and nose probably far more than any normal Nidoran that had ever lived… And yet the only thing either of them ever heard these days was the croak of her empty belly.

The longer Featherbeak was forced to listen to the pup endure in silence, the stronger the terribly vivid memories became of watching his hatchlings cease moving one by one. On such days like the present one, where the sky again blanketed the mountain in impenetrable gray, even sunlight was not enough to deter the bird from taking flight – the search for food, the terrible pain of flying in the cold, the frigid temperatures, the owl grasped at _anything_ to take his mind off the looming spectre of failure, and what it would mean for his adopted ward.

When at last the owl could stand the torture no longer, he left abruptly from the den; the Nidoran pup had grown used to such sudden departures as the winter dragged on, and it was out of consideration for the old bird that she quietly learned not to voice her discomfort to him anymore, growing as silent and pensive as a Noctowl herself, where a normal Nidoran pup would be playful and boisterous.

In the air, Featherbeak's eyes blurred; the Noctowl blinked the moisture of the tears away, lest it freeze his eyes. _Empty-taloned yet again,_ he thought to himself sometime later; mournfully, he began drifting back in the direction of the tree when he sensed the arthritis in his wings finally threatening to drop him in a snow drift somewhere up to his slowly drooping and graying crest.

The night had been long – unusually long. Featherbeak guessed it to be the longest night of the year, which was a sign that they had made it roughly halfway through the winter. However, at the rate things were going, the pup wouldn't survive the week, let alone several more months without food. Further, the temperatures were dropping already – the already excessively short day was nearing its end, and the gloomy clouds made promises of another nightly snow.

Movement caught the Noctowl's eye as he neared their tree – immediately, he scanned the snows, looking for the tell-tale tracks in the snow that would undoubtedly lead him to fresh prey, or something he could perhaps try to feed her; however, there was absolutely nothing but uninterrupted and featureless white all around.

 _Well, there it is…_ _I'm_ _finally_ _beginning to see things…_ _Again_ _._ The Noctowl thought bitterly, giving up his hopes with nothing else moved.

However, after concluding a final pass, Featherbeak glanced up and saw something in a small patch of clear snow a short distance away from the base of his tree. The spot of faded color stood out like a beacon against the backdrop of alabaster white; the owl's heart nearly stopped.

The shock of what he beheld, deadened the pain Featherbeak felt at having to fully unfurl his wings and catch himself on the thin air, lest he fall and break a wing. The Noctowl alighted next to a modest pile of dried fruit, and nuts. Immediately the owl poured every ounce of his concentration into his eyes, as he glanced around, staring hard at the utterly featureless, smooth snow. Not a flake seemed out of place; none of it had been disturbed, except beneath him where he'd landed, and little had collected atop the pile. It had not been there for long.

The Noctowl froze, as a thought occurred to him: He glanced up in the direction in which he thought he had seen movement from above. There were still no tracks; nothing moved even there. The owl turned back to the food – here was the answer to his nightly silent, impassioned prayers to Arceus.

Looking around again once for good measure for whoever had undoubtedly placed the offering there deliberately and finding no one, Featherbeak did not question the giver's generosity for long, immediately seized as much as he could in each talon and even his beak, and verily scrambled the short distance back to the den.

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Silently, a pink figure watched the aging Noctowl's head twist one way and then another. The Clefairy ducked out of sight behind a thick tree trunk a moment later; only when the owl scrambled for his den did the Clefairy begin loping weightlessly through the air, satisfied that the gift would be delivered to its intended recipient – it left no mark of its passing on the snow drifts.

Silent as the white powder itself, the Clefairy soon reached its destination: one of the countless entry points that led into the Mountain itself, so cleverly disguised that even the snow would leave no clue to its whereabouts either; an Elder – a Clefable – waited patiently within the grotto.

"You made sure the gift would be discovered?" The Elder asked, once the Clefairy approached.

"I did, Mountain Mother." The Clefairy responded, hesitantly.

"Good... Were you spotted?" The Clefable asked.

"I don't believe so, Mountain Mother. I did my best to remain hidden from the winged one, and I am at least certain that I was not followed." The Clefairy responded.

However, the Clefable was silent for a moment, judging the response; the bird was old, beaten. He was not blind. "Hm… Little gets past that one." The Elder remarked; the Clefairy paused, unsure of how to take the comment.

"Mountain Mother…" The Clefairy said hesitantly, trailing off. "Our forecasts of the winter's severity were correct – as well prepared as we are, we won't have missed such a small sum from our winter stores…" The Clefairy trailed off; the Elder said nothing in response.

"…Why did we intervene now, when we never have before? Is it not our policy to remove ourselves from interfering with the will of the Mountain?" The Clefairy finally asked, when it was apparent the Elder would not reply without prompting.

The Elder remained silent for a long while, staring back the way the Clefairy had just come from, where the fading light of day retreated from the entrance of the grotto.

"Yes." The Elder remarked simply after a moment, tonelessly.

Then the Clefable turned away from the entrance, and began leading the younger charge down into the depths of the mountain; the Clefairy fell into a reluctant silence, wishing to know more.

"…Somehow – something – about the little one resonates with the song of the Mountain itself." The Elder finally decided, voicing her thoughts out loud for the benefit of the Clefairy. "If the hatchling's life was truly destined to be forfeit, then she would have died the same night she hatched, and her body would have become one again with the soil of the Mountain." The Clefable remarked.

"…It was nothing less than a stroke of providence that she was delivered into the talons of the winged one exactly when she was. It was another miracle that he was resourceful enough to find her a wean-mother. And finally, it's inconceivable that he would still let his paternal instincts win him over even after all the pain they've brought him before." The Elder said.

"The Mountain has no control over the passage of the seasons – perhaps, it was originally the intention of the Mountain that the little one be spared. Perhaps she may even prove useful to us some day." The Clefable said.

"However, each day here is a fight for survival, and none are exempt from it including us. If sparing her was a miscalculation on our part, then the Mountain _will_ find a way to claim her life in the end in spite of our actions… Of that, there can be no doubt." The Clefable finished grimly.

The Clefairy listened to this in silence. The logic was sound – it _was_ the wisdom of an Elder, after all; nothing more was said between the two after that.

Together, the pair filed silently onward down the tunnel as it wound its way further into the Mountain; there were other things to think about now that the Clefairy's curiosity was sated, and by the time the two were far enough away from the light at the grotto entrance to be fully shrouded in darkness, the Clefairy's thoughts already drifted away from the hatchling and the gift, and on to far more important matters.


	13. Nothingness

For weeks while the cold and snows remained bitter, the only pass-time the Noctowl and Nidoran pup could share in was conversation – conversation surrounding all manner of survival-related subjects, including foraging for food, locations for water, recounting other seasons the pup had not yet endured, her own uncertain future, and most importantly, other predatory creatures to be aware of.

More than a few times the pup had wrung Featherbeak's mind relentlessly for orations on the subject of humans; however, they held little interest for very long once she was satisfied with Featherbeak's appraisal that they were much fewer and far between on this section of the mountain than more important concerns, such as Ekans.

It was one morning as Featherbeak had already fallen asleep for the day when movement from beneath him stirred the aging Noctowl to alert wakefulness.

"Wha––?" Featherbeak demanded, instantly sitting up as the pup – now much larger and far less easy to sit on – attempted to seek cover beneath the Noctowl.

"Something sounds odd outside." The Nidoran pup mumbled somewhat nervously, as an odd warbling ring pierced the morning air.

Featherbeak cocked his head slightly, listened for a moment – and then churred in amusement. "Remember our discussion about Pidgey? Well, that is what one sounds like." The Noctowl explained dryly in amusement.

Encouraged slightly, the pup again ventured near to the entrance of the den and cast about, attempting to locate the illusive creature that she had seen but never heard before.

"If that's a Pidgey, then other birds must be starting to migrating back here. That means winter will be over soon, yes?" The pup asked, turning to Featherbeak.

To any other creature her size and even larger, the elderly Noctowl should have been the epitome of terror; though the old creature was stooped and bent by age and hardship, his crimson eyes took on an almost ethereal scarlet shined in the dim morning light – she could see the faint glint of light off his cracked but still wicked beak, and his even fiercer talons.

Poised as he was, his presence filled the increasingly cramped den fully, making him seem like a giant; it should have made him seem even more fearsome, particularly when he opened his beak wide to yawn, exposing the gullet that had been the end of countless other woodland creatures before.

However, too many times that same beak had brought the pup food and other little snacks scavenged or bartered from other small woodland creatures that emerged as the winter grew longer; too many times had the pup nestled between those same enormous talons, which stood poised to claw the life not out of her, but any that would threaten her in Featherbeak's presence.

The Nidoran pup saw only family.

"That's exactly what it means. Very good, my dear." Featherbeak said somewhat sleepily, though with delighted approval in his voice.

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By the time the winter snows completely ceased and the ground fully thawed, the Nidoran pup was more than ready to leave the nest literally and figuratively – sitting cooped up in a nest for days on end had been torture for the young and energetic pup.

"Featherbeak?" The pup asked one morning, after the Noctowl strained to lower the pup to the ground once again.

"I'm here." The Noctowl responded, muffling a yawn with his beak and shielding his eyes from the dim morning light.

"I'd like to do some scouting around today if it's alright with you." The pup replied, evidently eager to finally begin exploring the world outside the den for the first time; Featherbeak nodded, having expected this sooner or later.

"Of course, my dear. You know where to find me – just don't wander too far." The Noctowl responded; nothing more was said between the two – very carefully and very cautiously, the pup stalked off through the grasses.

A glowing sense of pride and thrill filled Featherbeak so that his plumage swelled out – though he as a Noctowl could certainly hear the snap of the rare twig here or there underfoot as the pup crept along, he was certain few other creatures would; she had taken to her lessons well.

When the pup did not return, Featherbeak quietly ascended to the lip of his den and turned, glancing around; the pup seemed contented to remain within sight of the tree, but then again the Noctowl knew she wouldn't remain that way for long.

 _Lo! In foraging for herself, she has taken her first flight – well, so to speak._ Featherbeak thought, infinitely amused by the imaginary rite of passage the pup had successfully reached.

Grim memories of the cold and bitter winter bled forth in the old bird's mind for a moment, gripping him – the long winter, empty stomachs, and having to resort in one case going hungry himself, so that Featherbeak could barter some of a Furret's winter stores in exchange for its own life.

 _No,_ the Noctowl thought forcefully, pushing the thoughts away. _The winter was harsh, but… She survived. She will survive – there isn't a spine on her back that isn't ready for the trials of the wild now that she's gotten a fair start._

And so it was one day not long afterward that the pup ceased to return to the tree at all, even for the night – however, Featherbeak's concerns died away immediately when he purely by chance he stumbled across her, asleep in the beginnings of what was surely a new den.

The Noctowl alighted on a branch silently, glancing around. There was shelter from the rain, wind, and most importantly, it looked as though a small den-like depression nearby could be easily excavated and rendered comfortably defensible against harsh snows and cold. Finally, it seemed as though the bramble thorns might discourage predators from bothering her.

Satisfied that the pup – _his_ pup – had well and truly 'left the nest', Featherbeak flapped off silently into the night and turned his thoughts to his own survival.

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Given that they too were loners by nature, Featherbeak had never expected to see any of his biological offspring ever again barring chance or happenstance – he seldom ever saw his mates either.

The Noctowl was therefore wholly unprepared for the Nidoran's peculiar habit of returning to visit every so often; at first, she would visit for days at a time and then weeks as she grew older.

However, as unusual as the behavior was, Featherbeak found that he did not mind visits from his last and greatest success; though she had inherited numerous Noctowl mannerisms and mindsets from him, she did not possess the territorial nature that another Noctowl would, and hence made good company the odd time she chose to visit.

It was therefore while out hunting early one evening during which late thick afternoon cloud cover overhead blotted out the sun, that Featherbeak caught the briefest glimpse of her highly familiar shade of blue down below him through the cover of the trees.

Bleeding off his speed and doing a slow flyover, the old Noctowl observed the Nidoran female silently stalking through the forest, sniffling around and occasionally eating whatever morsels she found. A wry eye-grin tightened the bird's features.

Spreading his rheumatic wings wide, Featherbeak began a Noctowl's trademark glide – silent, and ordinarily deadly. The cover of the trees masked his approach, and he spotted a branch near the Nidoran suitable for perching upon.

However, the blue froze; Featherbeak's sensitive eyes saw her ears twitch, and knew by the time his talons quietly sank into the tree bark that he'd been detected. True to form, she glanced up at him, frowning.

"Featherbeak?" She asked, sitting down.

"You finally heard me coming." Featherbeak remarked, eye-grinning widely.

"Just barely. But yes, I did." The Nidoran remarked, equally amused, then fell silent for a moment. "...What are you doing here?" She asked – although she often made visits to see him, it was rare that Featherbeak ever purposefully sought her out.

"Hunting – but I spotted you and thought I'd drop in. What are you doing all the way out here?" Featherbeak replied, glancing around at their surroundings; though this particular stretch of forest was… Familiar… To Featherbeak, it was a considerable distance from the Nidoran's den.

"I thought I'd explore a little further from my usual territory to get a better feel for the layout of the land… And then it got dark. I'll probably wind spending the night here somewhere though. I don't think it's safe to try and venture back in the dark – I never inherited your night sight, Featherbeak, and I wouldn't want to run into anything dangerous in the dark." The Nidoran replied.

Something about the pup's remark caught Featherbeak's attention and held it for a moment.

"Featherbeak?" The Nidoran asked after he missed his cue to respond.

"…You never inherited my eyesight because you aren't a Noctowl, my dear." Featherbeak responded after a moment; the Nidoran blinked in bewilderment.

"I'm not?" She asked, mystified; of all the subjects they had discussed in their time together, this had not been given much thought.

Featherbeak shook his head, then belatedly realized the gesture would be lost on her day-walker's eyes in the gathering dusk. "No, I'm afraid not." He explained, clearing his throat.

"Surely you realized long ago now how different the two of us are." Featherbeak continued; the Nidoran pup sat on her rump, her brow wrinkling in concern.

"I..." She said, weakly, trying to think of something to say; like all creatures, her earliest memories had already grown hazy, particularly the circumstances of her birth… And the Nidoran had always more or less assumed – or hoped – she might eventually some day grow to look and act more like Featherbeak eventually than she did now.

Featherbeak abandoned his perch to flutter down beside the pup and drape a wing across her body; it was reminiscent of the many times he'd sat upon her to keep her warm – however, she'd grown in size in the months since winter had ended; Featherbeak already would've had a very hard time ever picking the Nidoran up in his talons now, if he could at all.

"Now now – just because I said we are different from one another doesn't mean you are worth any less to me." Featherbeak chided reassuringly, seeing the crisis immediately spread across the Nidoran's face; she'd never doubted his word before, and wouldn't now despite the ugliness of the truth.

"I don't understand… Why Featherbeak?" The blue asked, crestfallen.

"Why did I adopt you if you weren't my own?" Featherbeak asked.

"No… Why did you spoil the illusion?" The Nidoran responded.

Privately, Featherbeak was dumbstruck by the question – however, sensing the degree to which the Nidoran was distressed, he forced himself to recover; he'd always assumed that as intelligent as she was, she'd have tacitly come to the conclusion on her own.

"Have I ever lied to you?" Featherbeak responded; the Nidoran's head hung.

"No." She admitted.

"Then why should I start now? Believe me when I say your being different no longer means anything to me – I cared for you as I would have one of my own… More so, even." Featherbeak responded, neglecting to mention that she'd survived where many of his own clutches had not; she was already suffering enough.

"Then where did I come from?" She asked, resting her head against him; her head sank into his feathers until she felt his feathered chest.

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised that your wanderings would bring you to this stretch of woods _now_ of all times." Featherbeak remarked absently, glancing around.

"The summer season is ending soon – which means Autumn will be upon us in the very near future. I'd say it was about this time fully one year ago that I first found you." He responded, thinking back.

It already seemed like so long ago that Featherbeak spent nights recounting his experiences to the pup as he had over the winter nights months ago; clearing his throat, Featherbeak began again as he had so many times before, for old time's sake.

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The two stood before a tangled, indistinguishable mess together early the next morning; the Nidoran stared for a long while.

" _This_ is a human?" She asked in plain disbelief, letting her eyes run over the sun-bleached white bones, blackened dessicated skin, and faded tattered clothing; both of them stood up wind of the smelly thing, which even now still played host to tiny insects and other scavengers.

"Was." Featherbeak corrected, quietly. "It died sometime the day before I found you." He replied.

"…Do you see that faded device perched atop it?" Featherbeak asked, directing her sight to what had once been the dead human's storage compartment – it was ripped and faded, having been plundered by larger scavengers long ago and broken down by the elements themselves, just as the owner had.

"Yes." The Nidoran responded.

"I found you in there. You had just hatched by the time I arrived – I guess you were too young then to remember. You could still fit in just one set of talons very easily back then." Featherbeak responded; the pup wanted to approach, but something instinctively kept her well back from the rotting corpse.

"Are there more?" The Nidoran asked, uncertainly.

"Yes – in the world at large, and here on the mountain… Though nearly all of the ones I know of that reside on the mountain all resemble this one, unfortunately." Featherbeak responded.

"Where did this particular human come from?" The Nidoran asked.

"I have no idea." Featherbeak responded, rolling his wings – a human gesture he himself had picked up long ago. 

"Then how will I ever know who my real parents are?" The Nidoran asked.

"…I don't suppose you ever will." Featherbeak finally admitted. "Humans have a habit of stealing the eggs of Pokemon and incubating the eggs themselves. This particular human here might have come from somewhere nearby, or from halfway across the world, for all we know." The Noctowl replied. "It could have picked you up at any time during those wanderings from whatever creatures sired you naturally – it may have even taken your egg from another human somewhere even further away."

The Nidoran stared at the two distinct, gaping black holes in what she assumed were the head; withered flesh curled away from what she assumed must have been a nose, and more than likely teeth. The instinctive revulsion the blue felt grew the longer she stood before the creature she knew was dead, from Featherbeak's instructions.

Something about this lifeless mess before her told the Nidoran that this human was wholly unlike the descriptions she' heard about humans from Featherbeak – the fact that it seemed to lay there and not out wandering as the Noctowl said he might, further unsettled the blue.

Inwardly, the Nidoran realized from Featherbeak's past lessons that this would be the end result of all living things including herself, hopefully on some _very_ distant day from now. Even so, for the human, that day had long since come and gone, reducing it to an eerily still black-eyed nothingness that seemed like an empty charicature of its living self.

"Featherbeak?" The Nidoran asked after a moment, again sounding something like the lost pup she had been when he'd first found her.

"Yes?" He asked.

"I think we should go now." She responded – there was nothing here for her. Nothing but a pile of rotting flesh and a mystery whose solution had been lost to her before shed could have ever attempted to solve it in the first place, and the smell was beginning to bother her.

"As you wish, my dear." Featherbeak responded, squinting heavily as he glanced skyward – it would be full daybreak soon, and he would normally have already been home by now, settling down for the night, even with the emptiness gnawing at his stomach – in staying with the Nidoran, he'd forgotten to hunt again; still, he'd endure it in stoic silence… It probably paled in comparison to the emptiness within the Nidoran's heart.

Featherbeak accompanied her a distance overland, filing along in silence beside her; she cleared her throat quietly, an act that was not missed by Featherbeak's sensitive ears.

"I-I… I'll… I'll be fine Featherbeak… Won't I?" She asked, shakily; the question pierced Featherbeak, confirming his fears.

"I certainly hope so, my dear. I'll be there if you need me; you know I always have." He responded.

The Nidoran nodded – she seemed to be on the cusp of thanking him for that very paternal concern; however, aside from a quiet "Thank you, Featherbeak," She remained mournfully silent.

Sensing nothing more would be said given her current sense of loss, Featherbeak could only flap his wings and take off. She hadn't said it – hadn't outright acknowledged him as the surrogate parent he'd been since she'd never know her own… But, that didn't necessarily bother Featherbeak. Much.

He knew she'd eventually come to terms and thank him for being a parent some day… Hopefully.

A Rattata stirred somewhere far below, and Featherbeak was forced to shift his thoughts again to more immediate concerns.


	14. The Beginning (The End)

As I've said before, all good things must come to an end sooner or later, and unfortunately here we have here the final chapter of The Mountain prequel mini-series.

A sincere thank you to all who read, followed along, or gave me even a moment's worth of your time and attention. Y'all the mvp's.

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"Ssssso…" A raspy voice hissed, startling the Nidoran pup wide awake from her afternoon nap. "…What's a… Deliciousssss… Little morssssel like you doing jusssst… Lying around?" The largest Ekans the Nidoran had ever seen queried, as it slithered closer.

The heightened instinct for danger immediately heightened the Nidoran female's spines – the Ekans hesitated for a moment, and the blue seized the opportunity to scamper free from her bramble berry den before the snake could slither forward far enough trap her within it.

"Go away." The Nidoran commanded sharply in as fearsome a tone as she could muster – though she'd grown considerably over the seasons, it still came out as an angry squeak.

The Ekans let out a gargling hiss – a laugh, and swayed warily for a few moments.

"Ssssso rude. Aren't you going to invite me into your den for… Dinner?" The snake asked.

The Ekans began to coil, and the Nidoran pup's heart stopped. She'd known from the countless hours she'd spent learning from Featherbeak what that tensing was a prelude to.

The familiar memory of the Noctowl visited the Nidoran, and for a moment she would have dearly loved to see the old bird again – it had been a long time since she'd been to visit him… And with the appearance of this Ekans, she might never see him again.

The Nidorina let out a wordless growl as the Ekans jumped – the low pitched snarl befuddled the serpent just enough that it bungled its lunge; reflexes honed from a lifetime of being small and delicious took hold, and the pup narrowly recoiled from the snake's off-target strike.

The snake hit the dirt, and seized a mouthful of thorny bramble vines – the Nidoran seized a mouthful of the Ekans, using her rat-like front teeth to chomp down on the Ekans' tail with as much force as she could muster out of her jaw muscles.

The Ekans thrashed, spitting out the thorny brush immediately and hissing all manner of terrible invectives at the pup, who let go and danced away; she momentarily debated running – it would have been the wisest thing to do, given her small size.

 _This Ekans knows where I live now… If I run, it will only hunt me down, possibly without my noticing him until it's too late._ The pup thought grimly, tasting blood in her mouth and spitting it out.

The Ekans rounded on the Nidoran again, preparing to lunge at her; however, the pup turned tail and fled the clearing of her den immediately.

"I can sssssenssssse you, pup!" The Ekans hissed irritatedly, immediately beginning to slither off quickly in high pursuit of the pup while trying to avoid the incredible pain of what might be a few broken bones in its tail; however, they would heal in time… Particularly if the snake took on the many vitamins and minerals of a fresh kill.

An ear-splitting shriek made the Ekans writhe in discomfort at the sudden and unexpected blast of noise – however, it was a purely defensive move, only prolonging the inevitable.

A few moments later after the vestigial appendages that serve as its ears stopped ringing, the Ekans' sensitive ears detected vibrations through the ground – its quarry was escaping downhill.

Immediately the serpent set off after it, fury and pain driving it after the irritating little creature. The Ekans tracked the vibrations and moved to cut them off, passing around a fallen tree and expecting to come out nearly on top of the Nidoran on the other side – wicked, malicious glee filled the Ekans as it opened its mouth, and imagining the look of absolute terror on the blue's face when it ran practically nose-first into his fanged mouth. It shot forward like a whip.

 _CRUNCH!_

The serpent's deadliest and most precious weapons – its two wicked fangs – smashed as it collided, mouth agape, with the rock the clever little beast had used as a decoy target. The vibrations the Ekans sensed had stopped… For only a moment.

The pup leaped from the boughs of the fallen tree atop the Ekans' back; the Ekans knew the tables had turned he moment the pup landed astride its back. With the rock jammed in its mouth, and without even its precious teeth, the serpent could never begin to defend itself.

Then, it was the Ekans' turn to feel the terrific bite of sharp teeth.

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Though it was still only mid-afternoon, Featherbeak was stirred by wracking sobs – though the voice was not one he'd ever heard before, it was still instantly familiar.

Scrabbling to the lip of his den by feel rather than sight, the Noctowl's keen ears picked up the source of the commotion and he oriented on it. Cracking his eyes against the blinding light, the owl made out enough to fly to the ground.

The voice was deep – much deeper than he'd ever heard it. Still squinting terribly against the glare of the sun, a hazy shadow appeared before him, and a large face pushed into the feathers of his chest; moisture found its way past them to his bare skin.

"Featherbeak… Featherbeak, it happened again! I only did it in self-defense this time; I didn't do it on purpose, I swear!" The blue wailed, seeking comfort from the Noctowl, who was sobered in an instant.

"I'm sure you didn't. But you're here now, and you're okay… You _ARE_ okay, aren't you? I can't see!" Featherbeak said, fearfully; the large head nodded, threatening for the first time ever to knock him off his taloned feet.

No more was said for a time, as the bird silently stood by the traumatized blue.

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When the waterworks finally stopped and the story had been recounted in full, the blue finally gathered her wits about her enough to lead Featherbeak to the thick shade of some trees, where he could open his eyes. The first thing that caught his attention was that the scarlet pair of eyes he'd spent so long looking into fondly were now at eye-level with him, instead of below.

Immediately, they fell to his feet as she looked away. "I… I'm sorry I've been avoiding you." The blue mumbled – she had reacted very poorly to Featherbeak's suggestion that she try eating meat some weeks before; he hadn't seen her since… And now, she had inadvertently slain a rather large Ekans herself, apparently.

Featherbeak shook his head absently; how she could have remorse for killing something that had tried to eat her made no sense at all to the life-long predator. However, he kept such thoughts to himself; she clearly didn't have the heart or the aggression of a hunter, or a killer. "Never mind that." He said, doting on her for a while, then pausing.

"You… You're magnificent." The Noctowl remarked, standing back a pace and taking in the sight of the Nidorina that now sat before him – though she still seemed as small and helpless as ever, she was physically about equal in size with Feathebeak, and if her previous growth spurts had been any indication, she would likely even dwarf him later on in life.

"I don't feel like it. I don't even want to go back there." The Nidoran mumbled, weakly. "Nonsense. It's your home, and you've defended it and yourself. These things happen from time to time – it's the way of the mountain. I can say with honesty I would rather see you here in tears than somewhere else in the belly of a snake." Featherbeak replied, firmly.

There was a period of silence between them afterward; soon, shadows began to form as the blood-red sun began to slip further in the sky. "I… I'm such a hypocrite. I can't stand it." The Nidorina whimpered, shrilly – Featherbeak clicked his beak, stretching a wing over her face and shushing her. With the growth spurt evolving had caused, he could do nothing else – gone were the days where she might doze her sorrows away in the nest beneath him.

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Though the blue hadn't necessarily cried herself to sleep, she did lapse into a fitful and reluctant slumber at the base of Featherbeak's tree – as for himself, the Noctowl now stood before the motionless body of the snake. A single bite behind the creature's head signaled the snapped spine that had sent the serpent to the great beyond.

The chittering of Pokemon all around him greeted Featherbeak's ears – the forest was a living thing, with eyes and ears all around. Though the death of this Ekans had been a tragedy for the Nidorina, Featherbeak felt himself relax.

The price she'd paid had been incredibly steep, but Featherbeak judged to be the reward to be well worth it… Just as word had gotten around that she was not to be harmed under his watch as a pup, the other predators on the mountain would soon learn to avoid crossing her for any reason. With luck, she might never have to resort to defending herself in this way again.

The only problem now was the snake itself – it was near enough to her den that leaving it there would only torture the blue mercilessly with its presence. However, Featherbeak only licked his beak – he knew exactly what to do with it.

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 _It will be Autumn again soon,_ the blue thought.

Though the forest floor was covered in dead leaves and foliage, her large food made little audible noise as she very carefully paced along.

The trees, dirt, and rocks all terminated suddenly just ahead; the Nidorina studied the large flat landmark before her with nervous curiosity – Featherbeak had called it a 'road' before, and said it was a human invention they liked to travel upon.

Hesitantly, the Nidorina approached the deserted path and glanced in either direction, able to see for hundreds of paces – she shivered.

 _Why in the wide, WIDE world would those silly beasts want to travel on something so flat and exposed to predators?_ The Blue wondered in genuine consternation.

 _There's no tree cover to shield you from aerial threats, or foliage to escape pursuit behind. Their young must get eaten in droves…_ The blue thought, somewhat sympathetically – as many times as she'd been nearly eaten as a Nidoran, she probably wouldn't have lasted two minutes on the exposed path, should a hungry Braviary pass by overhead.

The road sat before her, motionless and silent. Before it lay other mountains – there were many, as far as the eye could see, all separated from one another by large, sweeping valleys that held Arceus knew how many new sights, smells, and scenery.

 _And predators._ The Blue thought, sourly – there was no telling what else lurked in those forests that might find even a Nidorina her size to be a tempting meal; spooked by the mere notion, the Nidorina backed away from the path – just the notion of the danger raised the blue's spines a little.

For a few moments, the blue sat in silence. The natural instinct to keep hidden and stay silent cultivated by her time as a Nidoran clutched her tightly – the very idea of crossing the path seemed dreadful itself.

 _I'm much larger now than I used to be though… Perhaps it wouldn't be so bad to poke around a little, and see what else is out there?_ The blue thought to herself; the path lay straight before her, temptingly.

For several minutes, the blue wrestled with the decision of whether to cross out onto the path; finally, she stood, squared her shoulders, and set her jaw – the decision was made. Quietly, she edged forward, again glancing for signs of activity on the road, and seeing none.

Very hesitantly, the blue set one large clawed forefoot on the smooth surface of the road – her spines stood straighter. It was wholly unfamiliar, and that alien sensation heightened her skittishness. _Come on… It's just a dirt path, nothing to be afraid of. Stop being a pup._

A deep thrumming noise greeted the Nidorina's ears, stopping her in her tracks. Quickly, the alert blue recoiled from the path, eyes wide with nervousness. _What's happening!?_ She wondered.

The thrumming noise grew louder, and louder – ears working frantically to pinpoint the source of the commotion, the blue glanced skyward and beheld a sight unlike any she'd ever seen before: an odd swirling object in the sky that seemed to be headed right for her.

 _To the abyss with this infernal 'road'!_ The Nidorina thought fearfully, turning tail and running for her life through the forest as quickly and silently as she could, seeking to put as much distance between herself and the odd sky-beast summoning road behind her.

The thrumming grew louder, and the Nidorina fought the urge to urinate in agitation – the sound was growing deafening, and it seemed to be headed straight for her.

The rumbling buzz reached a crescendo – hiding in near complete terror, the blue hid beneath a tree, searching the sky breathlessly for the source of the fearsome creature.

Overhead, a helicopter passed harmlessly by, on its way about its business.

The loud buzzing roar began to recede from the Blue's ears after a moment, and she nearly sagged in relief; the terrifying aerial menace seemed to have missed her, or mistaken her path for another – the sound continued to retreat from her ears, until there was at last silence once more.

Casting one extremely disgusted and furious glance in the direction of the road she'd run from, the blue used her powerful hind legs to churn up grass and dirt, tossing it high into the air behind her.

 _I could have **died**! I'm never going near that blasted thing ever again!_

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The muggy summer heat promised another oppressive day on the mountain – the blue halfway considered the trek to the creek for a drink and perhaps a splash around in or two.

The idea quickly lost favor – the water would be hot, the trip long and arduous; although it wouldn't be easy, it might just be best to hunker down in the shade of her den and take a nap.

A moment later, the beginnings of a loud noise reached the Nidorina's sensitive ears – it was the sound of a large flock of birds… And not just any birds, but a flock of Spearow; automatically the blue's eyes narrowed slightly in disgust – she hated the miserable, overly aggressive pests.

The sound of the flock grew louder and louder – they were probably preoccupied with their own affairs; if she remained inside her den, they would probably pass overhead without even knowing she was there.

However, a new sound attracted the blue's attention – it was quite different than the squall of the flock of Spearow.

 _Footfalls?_ The blue wondered, in mild confusion. They were large and heavy, almost unlike anything she'd ever heard; judging from the sound, the creature would have to be roughly her size – that alone was extremely unusual, considering there were few creatures on this side of the mountain that ever rivaled her in size.

A flash of movement caught the blue's attention – high above on a trail that lead to the upper slopes, something was indeed moving about.

In fact, it seemed to be heading straight for her.

 _I can only make out two footfalls… There's only one creature I know of that large that walks upright!_ The blue thought, shocked that a human would venture this far away from its normal habitat.

The creature seemed to be headed straight for her – at least, at first. By the time he tumbled for the fourth time, she concluded he had simply ducked off the trail and down the incline toward her den at random, perhaps to escape the Spearow.

Surprise at seeing the nut-brown creature temporarily overrode all thought in the blue, as it came to a stop at the mouth of her den, practically right at her fore-feet. Had the bipedal creature presented itself as any more of a danger to her, the Nidorina might have trampled it there on the spot and fled… But it didn't.

In fact, for all of the impressions and expectations she'd come to form about humans in their absence, this one hardly seemed to be anything like she'd imagined – it let out a low moan, clearly winded and knocked senseless by the tumble.

Clearly, it had been through good fortune alone that the hominid had avoided the poison ivy and thorn bushes that served to bolster her den's natural defenses against intruders.

The human finally shook the senselessness out its head and practically going rigid in terrified shock; belatedly realizing who and what he was dealing with, he unintentionally came practically nose to nose with the Nidorina.

Unsure of what to expect, and readying for any possible confrontation, the blue raised her spines defensively.


End file.
